VH 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND,  ^ 

ALONG  THE  RIGHT  AMD  LLi'  1         $: -^  j/%=~^ 

BANKS  OF  THE  RHINE, 

TO  THE  SOUTH  OF 

GERMANY, 

IN 

THE  SUMMER  AND  AUTUMN  OF 

1806. 


Perg-it  et  hostiles  (lanta  est  fiducia)  ripas 
Inconitatus  adit.  Claudian. 


BY  SIR  JOHN  CARR, 

OF  THE  HONOURABLE  SOCIETY  OF  THE  MIDDLE  TEMPLE, 

AUTHOR  OF  THE  STRANGER  IN  IRELAND;  A  NORTHERN  SUMMER, 

OR  A  TOUR  ROUND  THE  BALTIC. 


PHILADELPHIA: 

Printed  for  C.  and  A.  Conrad  and  Co.,  Samuel  F.  Bradford,  Byrch  and 

Small,  and  James  Humphreys,  Philadelphia:   Andrews  and 

Cummings,  Boston:   Peter  A.  Mesier,  New-York, 

and  Edmond  Morford,  Charleston. 

TRY  AND  KAMMERER,  PRINTERS, 


180' 


TO  HIS  GRACE 

JOHN,  DUKE  OF  BEDFORD 

MY  LORD, 


IF  the  name  of  your  Grace  had  been  rendered  il- 
lustrious solely  by  those  distinguished  Patriots  from 
whom  you  derived  it,  my  pride  could  not  fail  of  being 
eminently  gratified  by  being  permitted  to  dedicate  to 
you  the  following  pages :  but  other,  and  infinitely 
more  impressive  and  honourable  emotions  are  awaken- 
ed, when  I  reflect,  that  in  the  present  descendant  of 
the  House  of  Russel  are  displayed  that  patriotic  fer- 
vor, that  lofty  spirit  of  political  independence,  and 
that  ardent  zeal  in  the  great  cause  of  humanity,  which 
distinguished  so  many  of  its  branches  in  the  annals 
of  this  great  country.  Indeed,  my  Lord,  it  is  a  feli- 
city to  be  able  to  attest,  from  experience,  and  now  to 
record,  the  pretensions  of  your  Grace  to  the  gratitude 
of  your  country  and  the  love  of  mankind. 

To  the  wisdom  of  your  administration  was  com- 
mitted a  great  and  important,  but  a  much  neglected 
portion  of  the  United  Empire.  You  became  the  ruler 
of  a  country  long  oppressed,  wickedly  calumniated, 
and  still  bleeding  from  many  a  wound.  Soon  after  the 
elevation  of  your  Grace  to  this  august  situation,  pub- 
lic symptoms  appeared  which  called  for  sagacity  and 


iv  DEDICATION. 

energy  of  no  ordinary  nature.  Instead  of  listening,  in 
the  sunshine  of  vice-regal  magnificence,  to  the  vague 
reports  of  the  idle,  the  ignorant,  or  the  mischievous, 
you  penetrated  into  the  wild  recesses  of  that  distract- 
ed country,  reputed  to  contain  the  hot- bed  of  insur- 
rection; you  personally  contemplated  the  character  of 
the  poor,  suffering  Irish  peasant,  in  all  its  rough  but 
affecting  simplicity;  you  beheld  a  fellow-being  pos- 
sessed of  affections  easily  to  be  won  by  tenderness,  of 
a  vivid  imagination,  and  quick  and  ardent  susceptibi- 
lity, clothed  in  rags,  and  living  in  common  with  the 
beast  of  the  field,  in  a  state  of  penury  and  wretched- 
ness, unknown  to  the  miserable  and  oppressed  of  any 
other  region.  To  see,  to  feel,  and  to  meditate  relief 
were  all  simultaneous  in  the  mind  of  your  Grace. 
When  some  partial  excesses  at  length  broke  out, 
when  the  violent  and  the  intolerant  clamorously  de- 
manded the  terrible  inflictions  of  military  law,  you 
firmly,  wisely,  and  most  humanely  resolved  upon  sur- 
rendering up  the  guilty  to  the  laws  of  their  country, 
without  delivering  over  their  unoffending  vicinage  to 
the  savage  dominion  of  the  bullet  and  the  bayonet. 
The  noble  experiment  answered,  and  your  Grace  lost 
no  portion  of  your  popularity,  in  the  very  spot  where 
dire  necessity  compelled  you  to  offer  up  victims  to 
justice.  Your  conduct  on  that  occasion,  even  in  the 
absence  of  every  other  laudable  event  of  your  life,  is 
sufficient  to  sweeten  it  to  its  latest  period. 

A  great  and  unexpected  political  change  rendered 
the  administration  of  your  Grace  too  brief  to  execute 


DEDICATION.  V 

the  enlightened  and  salutary  plans  which  you  had 
conceived  for  the  amelioration  of  Ireland  ;  but  it  was 
of  sufficient  duration  to  afford  opportunities  of  dis- 
playing those  qualities  of  the  head  and  of  the  heart, 
which  will  endear  your  memory  to  that  unhappy 
country  for  ever,  and  you  have  left  to  it  the  benefits 
a  brilliant  example. 

That  your  illustrious  successor  may  adopt  the 
same  clemency  and  wisdom  which  'your  Grace  so  effi- 
caciously exhibited ;  and  that  he  may  complete  the 
measures  which  extraordinary  political  events  pre- 
vented your  Grace  from  perfecting,  is  the  cordial 
prayer  of  him  who  is  an  enthusiastic  well-wisher  to 
Ireland,  and  who,  with  great  respect,  has  the  honour 
to  subscribe  himself, 

My  Lord,  your  Grace's 

Most  obliged  obedient  servant, 

JOHN  CARR. 

3,  Garden-Court,  Temple. 
18th  May,  1807, 


TO  THE  READER. 


I  am  indebted  for  some  interesting  anecdotes  of 
the  most  eminent  Painters  of  the  Dutch  and  Flemish 
School  to  the  authors  of  the  Abrege  de  la  Vie  des 
Peintres,  to  Pilkington's  Dictionary  of  Painters,  and 
to  the  elegant  and  witty  D'Israeli. 

I  had  no  companion  with  me  during  the  greater 
part  of  the  Tour  described  in  the  following  pages, 
which  was  taken  amidst  many  untoward  and  embar- 
rassing circumstances,  the  melancholy  effects  of  war, 
and  which,  for  that  reason,  will,  I  hope,  be  favoured 
with  the  indulgent  candour  of  my  friends  and  of  the 
Public. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

A  Confession :  the  war:  an  adoption :  confidence  in  fortune  some- 
times necessary  :  hateful  character  of  a  spy  :  a  motive  for  tra- 
velling :  a  moral :  anecdote  of  a  royal  description :  miseries  of 
a  Dutch  galliot:  Calvin  and  Servetus:  religion  and  a  rope's 
end  :  Dutch  anecdote  of  fortitude  :  anecdote  of  a  Newfoundland 
dog :  appearance  of  Holland  from  the  sea :  its  coast :  a  dilemma : 
the  Maas  river:  anecdote  of  Napoleon  ;  of  a  Dutch  woman:  a 
disaster :  Rotterdam  described :  leaning  houses  1 

CHAPTER  II. 

The  boompies :  Bayle :  prerogatives  of  genius :  Spanish  inscrip- 
tions: a  Dutch  dinner:  Dutch  beggars:  a  good  bargain:  anec- 
dotes of  some  members  of  the  Batavian  executive  body :  anec- 
dotes of  the  passion  of  the  Dutch  for  traffic:  anecdote  of  Lord 
Nelson  and  the  Dey  of  Tunis:  hereditary  dresses:  the  Ex- 
change of  Rotterdam ;  anecdotes  of  the  English  there :  several 
anecdotes  of  the  King  and  Queen  of  Holland :  public  opinion  of 
them :  duty  of  a  Tourist      -         -         -         -         -         -         13 

CHAPTER  III. 

Commission  countenances:  physiognomies  compared:  homage 
paid  to  genius:  Erasmus's  statue:  inscription:  revolutionary 
whims :  learned  gallantry :  kisses :  anecdotes  of  Erasmus : 
cathedral  of  Saint  Lawrence :  the  rival  organ :  charity  schools : 
public  examinations :  effects  of  education  on  the  public  mind : 
his  Grace  the  Duke  of  Bedford:  Mr.  Lancaster's  school         22 

CHAPTER  IV. 

The  coins:  practice  of  vails-giving  in  Holland:  fruit  and  vegeta- 
ble sellers:  Dutch  passion  for  scrubbing  and  mopping:  whimsi- 


x  CONTENTS. 

cal  sarcasm  of  a  traveller :  singular  offence  offered  to  a  chamber- 
maid :  Dutch  prints  of  Lord  Nelson :  treatment  of  our  coun- 
trymen at  Verdun :  Dutch  compared  with  the  Chinese  :  private 
collections  of  paintings :  brief  anecdote  of  the  Vanderwerfs : 
remarks  on  Dutch  and  Flemish  schools  :  Dorpt ;  anecdotes  of 
distinguished  persons  there :  anecdote  of  Cowper :  interposi- 
tion of  Providence         -------30 

CHAPTER  V. 

Licensed  brothels  ;  remark  upon  them  :  Dutch  literary  meeting 
described:  spitting  pots :  pipes,  Dutch  extravagant  in  them; 
smoking  ;  historical  anecdote  of  tobacco :  general  temperance 
of  the  Dutch :  arbitrary  power  of  police  masters  :  travelling  in 
Holland  very  cheap  and  very  agreeable  :  canal  to  Delft:  Dutch 
sawing  mills :  English  circular  masonry  mills :  Dutch  lan- 
guage :  specimen  of  the  English,  Dutch,  and  German  lan- 
guages        --------         -41 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Dexterity  of  boatmen:  Overchie:  Dutch  gingerbread :  a  French 
saying :  Delft  china :  Delft :  Dutchman's  remark  on  the  war  : 
new  church:  anecdote  of  Grotius :  affectionate  stratagem: 
Grotius's  remarks  on  education:  Barnevcldt:  noble  female 
anecdote  :  the  carillons  ;  carilloneurs  :  Dutch  frugality  towards 
the  dead:  revolutionary  moderation:  firmness  of  manufac- 
tures ---------56 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Spirited  remonstrance:  anecdote  of  a  regicide :  interesting  anec- 
dote of  Frank  Hals  and  Vandyke :  a  Dutch  Bloomfield :  delight- 
ful passage  to  the  Hague :  Dutch  discussion  of  Desdemona's 
wish  :  Ryswick  :  approach  to  the  Hague  :  Dutch  review  :  old 
and  new  constitutions  compared :  brief  review  of  the  ancient 
constitution  of  Holland  :  also  of  the  political  history :  remarks 
on  the  Princes  of  the  house  of  Orange  66 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Remarks  on  the  last  Stadtholder  ;  also  on  the  Princess  of  Orange  ; 
her  presumption  and  indiscretion :  hatred  of  the  Dutch  to  the 
House  of  Orange:  Fete  at  the  Hague  on  the  flight  of  that 
family.  Reasons  assigned  foiithe  progress  of  the  French  arms  ; 
fqr  the  glorious  triumph  of  British  prowess.  Conduct  of  the 


CONTENTS,  *i 

new  government  towards  some  of  the  servants  of  the  old :  the 
new  constitution  of  Holland       -         -         -         -         -  76 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Grand  entry  of  King  and  Queen  into  Holland :  opening  of  the 
meeting  of  their  High  Mightinesses :  anecdote  of  royal  econo- 
my :  the  Hague  described :  Lady  W.  Montagu's  remarks  re- 
butted: pretty  female  faces:  a  Dutch  nursery:  Dutch  mode  of 
increasing  animal  heat :  the  wood :  its  sanctity :  the  palace  for- 
merly called  the  House  in  the  Wood :  anecdote  of  King  Wil- 
liam the  Third :  unostentatious  habits  of  the  Orange  family : 
charming  jaunt  to  Scheveling:  a  marine  hotel :  Mr.  Fox       92 

CHAPTER  X. 
Historical  anecdote  of  Scheveling :  anecdote  of  Lord  Nelson :  a 
marine  scene.  Passion  of  Dutch  for  flowers  not  subsided.  Vene- 
ration of  Dutch  for  storks :  causes  of  it :  quails  and  swans : 
humorous  blunder  of  a  Dutch  waiter:  universal  industry:  dogs 
and  goats :  the  theatre  :  theatrical  economy  :  prodigal  procrea- 
tion. Present  state  of  the  Hague  ;  state  of  literature  there :  brief 
anecdote  of  Daniel  Mytens :  of  John  Hanneman :  of  John  le 
Due,  or  the  Brave 106 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Vegetable  problems.  Approach  to  Leyden:  general  description 
of  that  town  :  the  town-hall :  celebrated  picture  of  Lucas  Van 
Leyden ;  anecdote  of  that  painter :  also  of  Karel  de  Moor :  pic- 
ture of  the  siege  of  Leyden:  description  of  that  horrible  siege: 
generous  and  heroic  conduct  of  the  Dutch  women:  also  of  Peter 
Adrian :  the  mount :  university  of  Leyden  :  the  students  :  anec- 
dotes of  Boerhaave  :  Peter  the  Great :  genius  and  diffidence: 
confidence  in  Providence :  monument  of  Boerhaave.  116 

CHAPTER  XII. 

The  botanic  garden :  the  celebrated  ancient  palm :  busts  and 
statues :  theatre  of  anatomy :  library  and  portraits  of  distin- 
guished persons:  museum  of  natural  history:  attractions  of 
the  university ;  its  present  condition ;  severity  of  its  examina- 
tions: anecdotes  of  Rembrandt;  his  genius  and  rapaciousness: 
a  stratagem :  criticisms  on  his  works  i  Mr.  Desenfan's  splendid 
gallery  of  paintings  :  John  of  Leyden  :  his  ambition,  cruelty, 
and  fate :  Dutch  bowing :  Saint  Peter's  church :  anecdote  of 
Russian  prisoners 158 


xii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  press  of  Leyden ;  its  staple  trade  :  anecdotes  of  Gerard 
Douw  :  of  Jean  Steen  ;  his  singular  painting  of  the  Deluge : 
anecdotes  of  Francis  Mieres :  the  pictorial  contest :  anecdote 
of  Vanderwelde :  the  village  of  Rhynsburg  :  singular  religious 
association :  a  curious  custom  :  explosion  at  Leyden  :  conduct 
of  the  King.  Haarlem  ;  its  celebrated  organ  described :  anec- 
dote of  Handel:  Mr.  Henry  Hope's  House         -         -        137 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Anecdotes  of  Lawrence  Coster :  art  of  printing  how  discovered; 
its  originality  disputed :  female  fortitude  and  presence  of  mind: 
siege  of  Haarlem  :  heroic  conduct  of  the  women  :  brief  anec- 
dote of  Wouvermans :  of  Bamboccio :  fatal  effects  of  severe 
criticism  :  anecdotes  of  Nicholas  Berghem  and  his  termagant 
wife  :  of  Ruysdaal :  enormous  sluices  ;  approach  to  Amsterdam; 
its  general  appearance  :  a  sley  :  Erasmus's  whimsical  descrip- 
tion of  that  city :  the  stadt-house :  silence  represented  as  a 
female:  the  tower:  clocks,  singular  mode  of  striking  the 
hour 148 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Dungeons  in  the  stadt-house  :  treatment  of  the  prisoners :  hall 
of  justice :  the  torture:  criminal  trials:  capital  punishment: 
anecdote  of  a  malefactor:  the  bank;  its  former  and  present 
state:  popular  tumult:  effects  of  diffusive  education:  public 
fete  at  Amsterdam :  dancing  Dutchmen :  the  Beguincs  :  ladies 
of  Holland :  house-rent :  the  water  of  Amsterdam         -     1 64 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Police :  fires :  laws  relating  to  debtors  ;  ditto  to  bankrupts :  the 
aanspreekcrs :  singular  custom :  the  trckenkorb :  the  streets : 
insalubrity  of  stagnant  canals:  societies  for  recovering  drowned 
persons:  noble  conduct  of  the  Emperor  Alexander:  Polish 
gratitude:  Austria:  the  exchange:  a  Dutch  merchant :  her- 
ring fishery         -         -         -         -         -         -         -         -174 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

Former  commerce  of  the  Dutch  :  Batavia:  anecdotes  of  national 
frugality :  exchange  and  banking  business  :  commercial  house 
of  Messrs.  Hope :  Jew  fruit-sellers  :  marine  school :  the  rasp- 
house  :  the  work -house :  the  plantation :  priests  how  supported: 


CONTENTS.  xiii 


parish  registers :  the  poor :  literary  societies :  Felix  Meritus : 
modern  Dutch  painters 183 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

The  Dutch  theatre:  theatrical  traffic :  the  rondell :  singular  village 
of  Brock:  Saardam:  cottage  ofPeter  the  Great:  climate,  divisions, 
and  population  of  Holland:  journey  to  Zeyst:  Dutch  fond  of 
coffee :  small  farms  :  picture  of  a  Dutch  peasant's  nest :  effects 
of  industry :  palace  of  Soestdyke :  pyramid  raised  in  honour 
of  Bonaparte :  society  of  Herrenhuthers  ;  their  house  and  in- 
ternal arrangements  described  -         -         -         -  193 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

The  mall  of  Utrecht :  a  gasconade :  the  Rhine :  conquest  of 
Utrecht :  the  cathedral :  beautiful  lines :  anecdotes  of  distin- 
guished persons  born  at  Utrecht ;  the  ancient  inhabitants :  a 
direction  :  the  city  of  Arnheim  :  anecdote  of  Beck :  Dutchy  of 
Berg :  Cleves :  anecdote  of  Flink :  a  tedious  form :  anecdote 
of  brown  bread :  the  contrast :  the  reception :  Bonaparte's 
hatred  of  English         -------     204 

CHAPTER  XX. 

Dusseldorf  described ;  its  inhabitants ;  the  grand  ducal  court : 
anecdote  of  Murat :  a  double  entendre :  the  flying  bridge : 
Cologne :  a  contraband  peep :  the  cathedral :  a  collection  of 
gods :  a  bon  mot :  priestly  mummery :  anecdote  of  an  arch- 
bishop of  Cologne :  anecdote  of  Rubens  and  other  distinguished 
persons :  .present  state  of  Cologne         -         -         -         -     221 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

Remarks  on  the  French  army :  origin  of  the  conscription  :  Ro- 
bespierre :  French  soldiers :  policy  of  the  generals :  military 
vanity  :  bulletins :  mode  of  attack :  Rhenish  confederation : 
act  of  imperial  abdication  -         -         -         -         -         236 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

Imperial  regulation  necessary  to  be  known :  the  director  of  the 
bureau  des  diligences  par  eau :  singular  adventure  :  a  scrape : 
a  stratagem  :  passage  to  Bonn :  a  discovery  :  excellent  effect 
of  brandy  :  the  city  of  Bonn  :  the  Mall :  effect  of  black  :  pre- 
sent state  of  Bonn :  the  seven  mountains :  the  monastery :  an- 
ecdote of  the  Empress  Josephine:  beautiful  scenery  251 


xiv  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 

Basalt  mountains :  Andernach:  anecdote  of  General  Hoche:  Rhe- 
nish floats :  singular  accident :  French  police  :  Neuweid :  the 
Rhine  boat:  tomb  of  General  Marceau:  anecdote  of  French 
heroism :  Coblentz ;  its  surrender  to  the  French  arms :  anec- 
dote of  French  vivacity :  the  rock  and  fortress  of  Ehrenbreit- 
stein:  the  griffon:  stupendous  French  roads :  Boppart       261 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

The  young  conscript :  singular  French  anecdote:  St.  Goar;  its 
history  :  Oberwesel :  the  palatinate  :  a  celebrated  vineyard  :  a 
regale :  Bacharach :  Bacchus :  the  Rhyngau  song :  Rude- 
sheim  :  Roman  derivations :  the  priory  of  Johannesberg  :  vine- 
yards classed :  grapes  classed         -         -         -         -         -274 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

Biberich :  Charlemagne's  palace  :  bridge  of  boats  :  Mayence  : 
horrors  of  war:  the  art  of  printing:  the  Hockheim  hills:  re- 
marks on  old  hock :  the  tooth-brush :  Francfort  :  splendid  table 
d'hote :  inauguration  of  the  Prince  Primate :  anecdotes  of  the 
French:  the  fair 284 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 

Beautiful  village  of  Offenbach :  bravery  of  the  Hessians :  anec- 
dotes of  Mareschal  Augerau.  Excursion  to  Darmstadt :  minute 
posts :  Darmstadt :  law's  delay  in  Germany :  agreeable 
manners  of  the  Germans:  national  antipathies.  Return  to 
Francfort:  gloomy  appearance  of  the  continent.  French  army 
on  its  march  against  the  Prussians.  Return  to  London         294 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND, 


CHAPTER  I. 

A  CONFESSION. ...THE  WAR. ...AN  ADOPTION. ...CONFIDENCE  IN  FOR- 
TUNE SOMETIMES  NECES3ARY...HATEFUL  CHARACTER  OF  A 
SPY. ...A  MOTIVE  FOR  TRAVELLING.... A  MORAL. ...ANECDOTE  OF 
A  ROYAL  DESCRIPTION. ...MISERIES  OF  A  DUTCH  GALLIOT.... 
CALVIN  AND  SERVETUS.... RELIGION  AND  A  ROPE's  END...  DUTCH 
ANECDOTE  OF  FORTITUDE. ...ANECDOTE  OF  A  NEWFOUNDLAND 
DOG. ...APPEARANCE  OF  HOLLAND  FROM  THE  SEA. ...ITS  COAST.... 
A  DILEMMA. ...THE  MAAS  RIVER....ANECDOTE  OF  NAPOLEON.... 
OF  A  DUTCH  WOMAN. ...A  DISASTER. ...ROTTERDAM  DESCRIBED... . 
LEANING  HOUSES. 

THE  public  shall  be  my  confessor. — In  the  summer  of  last 
year,  whilst  the  larger  portion  of  the  civilized  world  was  anxiously 
awaiting  the  result  of  our  sincere  negotiations  for  a  peace,  which, 
alas !  the  crafty  ministers  of  Napoleon,  never  intended  should  be 
other  than  mere  "  romans  fiolitiques"  the  desire  of  contemplating 
a  country,  and  a  race  of  people  to  me  entirely  new,  induced  me  to 
trespass  upon  their  shore. 

I  resolved  upon  visiting  Holland,  although  in  a  state  of  reluc- 
tant war  with  my  own  country,  of  a  war  which  yet  permitted  to 
her  commerce  a  few  stolen  embraces  with  that  of  England,  which 
forced  many  a  pursy  Dutchman  to  lament  the  separation,  and  in 
the  narcotic  atmosphere  of  his  consoling  pipe,  to  wish  for  better 
times.  In  gratifying  my  wishes,  I  was  guilty  of  assuming  a  cha- 
racter respected  in  every  country,  as  well  for  its  being  most  wisely 
and  profitably  at  peace  with  all  the  world,  as  for  its  integrity  and 
enterprize:  I  became  an  American,  and  by  an  act  of  temporary 


2  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

adoption,  fixed  upon  Baltimore  in  North  America  as  the  place  of 
my  nativity.  A  fortunate  correspondence  in  the  personal  descrip- 
tion, except  a  slight  variation,  not  easily  discoverable,  relating  to 
my  face  and  age,  enabled  a  friend  of  mine,  a  legitimate  American, 
to  accommodate  me  with  his  passport,  which  after  all  I  might  as 
well  have  left  behind  me,  so  kindly  are  the  Hollanders  disposed 
towards  us. 

I  was  promised  by  my  friend  a  full  description  of  the  principal 
places  in  Baltimore,  and  of  the  adjacent  country,  that  I  might  pass 
unsuspected  through  a  cross  examination,  should  any  be  attemp- 
ted: the  description  never  arrived,  or  arrived  too  late,  and  I  as- 
cended my  chaise,  as  ignorant  of  Baltimore  as  of  the  Peruvian 
Potosi,  trusting  to  that  good  chance  which  has  often  favoured  me, 
and  under  the  guidance  of  which 

"  in  my  school  days,  when  I  had  lost  one  shaft, 
"  I  shot  his  fellow  of  the  selfsame  flight 
"  The  self*  same  way,  with  more  advised  watch, 
"  To  find  the  other  forth ;  by  vent'ring  both, 
w  I  oft  found  both." 

Merchant  of  Venice,  Act  I.  Sc.  \. 

The  stratagem,  if  not  perfectly  blameless,  was  at  least  intended 
to  be  an  inoffensive  one;  I  had  no  hopes  of  a  peace,  and  conse- 
quently none  of  seeing  Holland  in  a  more  regular  mode.  I  went 
not  to  investigate  the  nakedness  of  the  land,  and  by  availing  my- 
self of  its  confidence  to  penetrate  the  military  depots,  the  docks 
and  arsenals  of  a  country  not  in  amity  with  my  own. 

I  abhor  the  character  of  a  spy,  moving  in  friendly  garb,  how- 
ever useful  his  treachery  may  be  to  his  employers.  My  imposition 
extended  no  farther  than  to  enable  me  to  make  a  picturesque  tour 
through  an  almost  aqueous  kingdom,  to  view  its  natives  in  their 
ordinary  habits,  to  glide  upon  their  liquid  roads,  to  saunter  in  their 
green  avenues  and  flourishing  gardens,  and  trace  the  wonderful 
results  of  that  daring  and  indefatigable  ingenuity,  which  has  rais* 
ed  the  permanent  habitation  of  man  in  the  ocean,  and  made  suc- 
cessful inroads  upon  the  physical  order  of  the  universe. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  $ 

But  though  the  deception  gave  no  pang  to  my  conscience,  yety 
harmless  as  it  was,  (and  let  me  mention  it  as  a  moral  lesson)  it 
did  not  escape  the  lash  of  many  a  petty  inconvenience.  Often  have 
I  been  pestered  upon  the  supposition  of  my  being  an  American 
merchant,  with  interrogations  as  to  the  number  of  partners  I  had, 
how  many  clerks  I  kept,  and  the  many  other  perplexing  queries 
of  minds  at  once  devoted  to  commerce,  and  curiosity :  nor  did  I 
escape  dilemmas  infinitely  more  perilous. 

Having  thus  in  all  candour  confessed  my  offence,  if  such  it 
ought  in  justice  to  be  called,  and  which  has  also  met  with  its  due 
proportion  of  chastisement,  I  trust  I  shall  receive  absolution  from 
my  reader,  and  in  that  hope  I  shall  now  proceed  to  my  narrative. 

I  intended  to  have  availed  myself,  as  I  wish  I  had  done  on 
former  occasions,  of  the  indulgence  usually  allowed  to  tours  given 
in  the  shape  of  epistolary  correspondence,  the  ease  and  familiarity 
of  which  render  the  tourist  less  formal,  and  the  critic  more  indul- 
gent ;  but  the  war  presented  an  obstacle  to  the  adoption  of  a  plan 
which  would  have  been  more  congenial  to  my  mind,  and  to  the 
nature  of  the  remarks  I  have  to  offer. 

In  company  with  two  highly  esteemed  friends,  I  proceeded  to 
Gravesend:  upon  the  road,  we  were  charmed,  by  occasional  views 
of  the  majestic  Thames,  formed  by  a  rich  setting  sun  into  the 
appearance  of  an  inverted  sky,  decorated  by  ships  more  supported 
over  than  ufion  its  bosom,  and  a  vast  expanse  of  richly  cultivated 
land  fading  in  the  mist  of  a  far  distant  horizon* 

Of  the  country  which  I  was  quitting,  and  of  that  to  which  I 
was  proceeding,  our  Charles  the  Second,  a  monarch  of  whom  Sir 
Richard  Bulstrode  justly  says,  that  had  he  loved  business  as  well 
as  he  understood  it,  he  would  have  been  the  greatest  prince  in 
Europe,  observed,  "  that  the  former  was  the  most  comfortable 
"  climate  to  live  under,  he  had  ever  experienced ;  as  there  were 
"  more  days  in  the  year,  and  more  hours  in  the  day,  that  a  man 
il  could  take  exercise  out  of  doors  in  it,  than  in  any  country  he  had 
*'  ever  known.  That  during  his  exile  he  had  seen  many  countries, 
"  of  which  none  pleased  him  so  much  as  the  Flemings,  who  were 
"'  the  ?nost  honest  and  true-hearted  people  he  had  ever  met  with: 


4  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

"  and  added  very  prophetically  to  me,  to  whom  he  addressed 
"  these  remarks,  I  am  weary  of  travelling-,  I  am  resolved  to  go 
"  abroad  no  more ;  but  when  I  am  *  dead  and  gone,  I  know  not 
"  what  my  brother  will  do,  I  am  much  afraid  that  when  he  comes 
"  to  the  throne  he  will  be  obliged  to  travel  again."  A  prediction 
fatally  realized  by  the  wicked  folly  of  the  royal  object  of  it. 

At  Gravesend  we  paid  six  guineas  apiece  to  a  Dutch  captain, 
and  a  little  favourable  breeze  springing  up,  we  proceeded  on 
board  with  a  large  party  composed  of  specimens  of  the  human 
race  from  various  parts  of  the  globe,  proceeding,  through  the  in- 
dulgence of  the  government  of  Holland,  to  their  various  destina- 
tions on  the  continent.  The  moment  we  stepped  on  board  we 
found  we  were  victims  to  the  most  infamous  imposition.  Six 
guineas  for  a  birth  in  a  vessel,  which  Noah  in  the  first  rudiments 
of  his  art,  would  have  made  a  thousand  times  more  commodious ! 
Figure  to  yourself  about  forty  persons  stowed  in  a  Dutch  galliot 
of  about  one  hundred  tons  burthen,  deeply  laden  with  a  cargo  of 
chalk,  Sec.  a  hold  near  the  bows  covered  with  straw  for  the  accom- 
modation of  thirty-six  of  the  passengers  ;  a  low  miserable  cabin, 
four  feet  high  on  the  deck,  which  formed  the  honey-moon  bower 
of  a  young  Swiss  and  a  pretty  English  girl  just  married;  and  a 
a  little  hole  astern  which,  furnished  with  a  couple  of  tickings 
crammed  with  Dutch  peas  instead  of  feathers,  constituted  the 
vestibule,  drawing-room  and  chamber  for  me  and  one  of  my  com- 
panions. 

Hoping  for  a  speedy  termination  to  our  marine  miseries,  we 
set  sail  and  slowly  creeped  down  the  Thames  by  the  aid  of  a 
scanty  breeze,  which  dying  before  we  had  advanced  two  miles, 
left  us  as  a  legacy  to  the  tardy  tides.  Indeed,  we  almost  tided  it 
over  to  Holland,  in  the  achievement  of  which  we  were  six  long 
days  and  nights ;  but  then  the  days  were  serene  and  warm,  and 
the  nights  were  adorned  by  a  brilliant  moon,  and  the  blue  vault 
of  heaven  was  spangled  over  with  stars. 

Our  captain  and  his  crew  exhibited  twice  a  day  that  attention 
to  their  devotions,  Which  is  still  so  characteristic  of  their  country, 
in  spite  of  every  hostile  attack  and  insidious  intrigue  of  France,  in 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  5 

the  most  vulgar,  impious,  and  savage  era  of  her  bloody  revolution. 
The  breakfast  of  every  morning,  and  the  supper  of  every  evening, 
were  consecrated  by  a  long  shrill  anthem,  and  still  longer  prayer. 
The  cook  was  the  chaplain,  and  the  kitchen,  a  hole  of  about  eight 
feet  by  five,  the  chapel.  The  spirit  of  Calvin,  if  it  be  not  offered 
up  to  the  manes  of  Servetus,  must  have  smiled  with  satisfaction 
at  the  motley  group,  surrounding  a  pot  of  boiled  peas  and  pork, 
and  enveloped  in  a  deep  fog  of  steam  and  smoke,  thus  offering  up 
their  homage  in  the  language,  and  according  to  the  rites  of  that 
merciless  reformer. 

The  piety  of  the  commander  was  carried  to  an  extreme 
length.  One  morning  we  were  disturbed  by  a  great  noise:  the 
captain  had  compelled  his  son,  a  sprightly  lad  of  about  nine  years 
old,  to  read  the  Dutch  Testament  for  three  days  together,  and 
with  scarcely  any  cessation;  in  consequence  of  which  the  young 
disciple  became  restive,  and  whilst  his  father's  back  was  turned 
committed  the  apostles  to  the  deep,  for  which  he  received  a  tole- 
rable proportion  of  castigation.  Fifty  times  a  day  were  we  annoy- 
ed by  our  pious  commander  vociferating  to  his  child, 

"  Leer,  leer,  jou  luigaart,  of  dit  endje  touw  zal  je  leeren." 
"  Learn,  learn,  you  idler,  or  this  rope's  end  shall  teach  )  ou." 

I  restored  our  captain,  who  spoke  English  very  well,  to  good 
humour,  by  relating  to  him  an  anecdote  of  the  activity  and  cool 
philosophy  of  a  Dutch  sailor  belonging  to  the  fleet  under  the  com- 
mand of  the  celebrated  Van  Tromp,  who  immortalized  himself  by 
his  naval  victories  over  the  Spaniards  in  1639,  but  submitted  to 
the  superior  skill  and  prowess  of  the  British  fleet  under  the  com- 
mand of  the  sturdy  patriotic  Blake.  At  the  time  when  the  hostile 
fleets  were  laying  very  near  each  other,  after  a  severe  engage- 
ment, to  refit,  a  British  and  Dutch  sailor  endeavoured  to  rival  each 
other  by  their  activity  in  ascending  and  descending  the  rigging  of 
their  respective  ships;  at  last  the  English  sailor  astonished  his 
competitor  by  standing  with  his  heels  in  the  air  upon  the  truck 
head  of  the  main  top  gallant  mast;  the  Dutchman  endeavoured  to 
do  the  same,  but  in  the  attempt  fell  upon  the  deck,  from   which, 


6  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

with  great  anguish  and  difficulty,  he  raised  himself  a  little,  and  ex- 
claiming to  the  Englishman,  "  dere  myhneer  can  you  do  dat," 
expired  upon  the  spot.  The  Dutch  are  very  fond  of  dogs.  Our 
captain  had  a  bitch  and  two  puppies  on  board  of  a  very  peculiar 
breed,  for  which  he  expressed  great  attachment,  and  he  was  one 
day  not  a  little  amused  at  my  telling  him  that  at  the  commence- 
ment of  the  gallant  action  which  took  place  between  the  Nymph 
and  Cleopatra  in  the  last  war,  there  was  a  large  Newfoundland 
dog  on  board  the  former  vessel,  which,  as  soon  as  the  firing  began, 
ran  from  below  deck  in  spite  of  every  exertion  of  the  men  to  keep 
him  down,  and  climbing  up  into  the  main  chains,  there  kept  up  a 
continual  barking,  and  exhibited  the  most  violent  rage  during  the 
whole  of  the  engagement.  When  the  Cleopatra  struck  he  was 
amongst  the  foremost  to  board  her,  and  walked  up  and  down  her 
decks  as  if  he  participated  in  the  glory  of  the  victory  obtained  by, 
the  English. 

After  a  passage,  during  which  our  patience  was  put  to  a  severe 
trial,  we  discovered  vSchouwen,  and  soon  after  the  Island  of  Go- 
ree,  where  the  wind  began  to  freshen,  and  just  before  we  made 
the  mouth  of  the  Maas,  we  met  and  hailed  a  fine  large  fishing 
smack,  the  captain  of  which  our  commander  endeavoured  to  pre- 
vail upon,  by  the  usual  and  generally  successful  application  of  a 
little  money,  to  smuggle  us  into  the  Briel :  after  a  long  consulta- 
tion, the  captain  and  crew  of  the  smack,  not  considering  that  all 
was  fish  which  came  to  their  net,  refused  to  take  charge  of  us,  and 
to  our  no  very  pleasant  sensations,  instead  of  standing  out  to  sea, 
tacked  and  returned  to  the  Briel  under  full  press  of  canvass.  A 
low  slimy  shore  surmounted  by  green  flags  and  a  few  scanty 
oziers  announced  our  voyage  to  be  at  its  close,  and  we  entered 
the  river  of  a  country  which  our  Hudibrastic  Butler  thus  pee- 
vishly describes: 

t(  A  country  that  draws  fifty  foot  of  water, 
"  In  which  men  live  as  in  the  hold  of  nature; 
"  And  when  the  sea  does  in  upon  them  break, 
"  And  drowns  a  province,  does  but  spring  a  leak; 
lc  That  always  ply  the  pump,  and  never  think 
'*  They  can  be  safe,  but  at  the  rate  they  stink; 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  7 

"  That  live  as  if  they  had  been  run  aground, 

"  And,  when  they  die,  are  cast  away  and  drown'd; 

"  That  dwell  in  ships,  like  swarms  of  rats,  and  prey 

"  Upon  the  goods  all  nations'  ships  convey; 

"  And  when  their  merchants  are  blown  up  and  crack 

"  Whole  towns  are  cast  away  in  storms  and  wreck; 

"  That  feed  like  cannibals,  on  other  fishes, 

"  And  serve  their  cousin  germans  up  in  dishes, 

"  A  land  that  rides  at  anchor,  and  is  moor'd, 

"  In  which  they  do  not  live,  but  go  aboard." 

The  Duke  of  Alva,  with  more  whimsicality  and  less  bitterness, 
observed,  "  that  the  Dutch  were  the  nearest  neighbours  to  hell  of 
any  people  on  the  earth,  for  they  dwelt  the  lowest.5* 

In  consequence  of  the  tide  being  always  very  rapid  when  going 
out,  and  the  wind  again  falling,  we  came  to  an  anchor  in  the  mouth 
of  the  Maas.  One  of  the  first  objects  that  saluted  our  eyes,  in  this 
state,  was  the  telegraph,  which  was  in  a  state  of  uncommon  activity, 
and  the  glasses  of  its  official  attendants  often  came  in  direct  oppo- 
sition with  ours.  The  balls  flew  up  and  down  with  wonderful  rapi- 
dity for  nearly  an  hour  after  we  anchored,  and  sufficiently  explained 
the  motive  which  induced  the  captain  of  the  smack  to  return  to 
port.  The  signification  of  the  word  Briel,  in  Dutch,  is  s/iectaclc, 
which  is  supposed  to  have  given  its  name  to  this  place,  on  account 
of  the  extensive  view  which  its  buildings  command  of  the  surroun- 
ding country.  This  town  is  celebrated  for  having  given  birth  to  the 
illustrious  warrior  I  before  mentioned,  admiral  Cornelius  Van 
Tromp. 

In  the  dead  of  the  night,  and  in  a  deep  fog,  a  fishing  boat  drop- 
ped along  side,  the  master  of  which  told  us  that  the  last  vessel 
which  had  arrived  from  England  had  been  confiscated,  and  all  the 
passengers  made  prisoners,  and  after  this  exordium  offered  to  con- 
duct us  in  safety  past  the  guard-ship  if  we  would  give  him  two 
guineas  apiece:  and  to  secure  our  transit,  he  proposed  shutting  us 
all  down  in  his  cabin,  under  hatchways,  for  that  night  and  the  whole 
of  the  next  day,  and  then  dropping  past  the  guard-ship  in  the  even- 
ing; during  all  which  time  we  must  have  sat  chin  to  knee,  and  have 
been  infinitely  worse  accommodated  than  a  cargo  of  African  slaves. 


8  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

As  we  had  an  aversion  from  being  introduced  into  the  kingdom  in 
this  furtive  manner,  we  persisted  in  refusing  to  quit  our  vessel,  to 
the  no  little  mortification  of  our  captain,  who  having  safely  deposi- 
ted our  passage  money  in  a  large  tin  box,  was  very  anxious  to  get 
rid  of  us  in  any  manner.  I  believe  personal  apprehensions  induced 
him  to  weigh  the  anchor  early  next  morning,  and  to  bear  away  for 
Maaslandsleys,  on  the  other  side  of  the  Maas,  where  after  the  cap- 
tain had  satisfied  the  commodore  commanding  the  guard-ships 
there,  to  whom  he  was  well  known,  that  we  all  came  from  Varel, 
a  little  neutral  town  to  the  eastward  of  the  Weser,  a  fast  sailing 
fishing  boat  was  provided  to  take  us  up  to  Rotterdam,  a  distance  of 
twenty-five  miles,  at  half  a  guinea  a  head. 

Gladly  we  bade  adieu  to  our  miserable  ark,  and  about  six  o'clock 
in  the  evening  embarked  upon  the  Merwe  river,  a  noble  branch  of 
the  Maas,  the  breadth  of  which  is  about  a  mile,  lessening  but  in  a 
little  degree  as  it  reaches  Rotterdam.  The  water  of  this  river  is 
rather  foul,  its  shores  are  beautifully  lined  with  villages,  farm  houses 
and  avenues  of  trees.  A  botanical  gentleman  informed  me  that  the 
eryngium  campestre,  field  eryngo,  so  very  rare  in  England,  grows 
in  great  profusion,  and  wild,  on  either  side  of  the  river,  and  in  most 
other  parts  of  Holland. 

When  the  night  advanced,  the  floating  lanterns  of  the  fisher- 
men had  a  pleasing  and  romantic  effect,  as  we  glided  along  with 
a  fine  breeze ;  and  a  row  of  lamps  running  parallel  with  a  canal 
supplied  by  the  Merwe,  announced  our  passing  Schiedam,  so 
celebrated  throughout  Holland  for  its  distilleries  of  geneva,  of 
which  we  were  informed  there  were  three  hundred  before  the 
Dutch  submitted  to  the  arms  of  France. 

When  the  French  troops  entered  Holland  as  victors,  this  beauti- 
ful river,  in  a  season  remarkably  rigorous,  formed  a  compact 
road  of  ice  for  the  infantry,  cavalry,  and  artillery,  of  the  invaders : 
dreadful  as  the  winter  was,  the  French  were  in  want  of  the  most 
necessary  articles  of  clothing;  even  whole  battalions  were  desti- 
tute of  shoes  and  stockings,  and  centinels  frequently  did  duty  with 
no  other  covering  than  a  tattered  blanket,  and  the  fragment  of  a 
pair  of  breeches,  which  time  and  service  had  reduced  by  instal- 
ments to  little  more  than  a  few  shreds:  yet  they  did  not  repine. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  9 

In  a  milder  climate,  after  the  French  took  possession  of 
Bologna,  a  soldier,  whose  coat  was  nearly  in  the  predicament  of 
his  military  countryman's  breeches  before  mentioned,  came  up  to 
Bonaparte,  and  begged  that  he  would  order  him  a  new  one,  to 
which  his  general,  who  had  none  to  give  him,  very  shrewdly 
replied,  "  my  good  fellow,  that  will  not  do,  it  will  hinder  your 
wounds  from  being  seen.'* 

When  the  French  troops  entered  Rotterdam,  they  were  quar- 
tered on  the  inhabitants,  whose  good  opinion,  I  was  well  informed, 
they  soon  conciliated  by  their  quiet  conduct  and  orderly  deport- 
ment. I  afterwards  received  the  same  character  of  the  French  troops 
in  other  parts  of  Holland,  from  those  with  whom,  I  am  convinced, 
they  were  not  very  welcome  visitors,  on  account  of  the  contribu- 
tions which  they  levied. 

In  the  faces  of  our  crew,  and  the  scenery  on  each  side  of  us, 
before  dusk-fall,  we  saw  those  studies  to  which  the  exquisite 
works  of  the  Dutch  school  have  familiarized  every  person  of  taste. 
About  twelve  o'clock  we  arrived  at  the  boom,  or  barrier  for  ship- 
ping at  Rotterdam,  and  here  a  luckless  accident  had  nearly  befal- 
len me.  The  luggage  of  the  passengers  was  deposited  in  small 
holds  nearly  the  length  of  the  vessel,  covered  over  with  loose 
boards :  the  night  was  dark,  and  as  by  the  light  of  a  solitary  lamp 
we  were  endeavouring  to  get  at  our  luggage,  a  fat  Dutchman's 
wife  sprung  out  of  the  cabin,  in  which  she  had  been  concealed 
during  our  expedition  up  the  river,  who  thinking  that  we  were 
molesting  some  of  her  bonnet  boxes,  in  the  unguarded  violence 
of  her  approach,  slipped  into  one  of  the  holds,  the  boards  of  which 
had  been  inadvertently  left  open  by  the  Swiss  bridegroom  before 
mentioned,  in  an  irritable  struggle  to  obtain  his  luggage;  the  oaths 
and  howlings  of  the  poor  lady  brought  out  her  husband,  a  man 
whom  we  had  remarked  for  the  unpleasantness  of  his  physiognomy 
and  deportment  during  the  voyage,  and  as  I  stood  nearest  to  his 
prostrate  wife  in  the  act  of  assisting  her,  he  charged  me  with 
Laving  maliciously  occasioned  her  suffering,  and  threatened 
repeatedly  to  call  the  watchmen  of  ih.e  city  and  send  me  and  my 

companions  to  prison . 

B 


10  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

It  was  a  long  time  before  I  could  allay  the  storm,  and  dulcify 
the  temper  of  this  man,  which,  considering  my  situation,  required 
some  little  forbearance  and  management  of  feeling.  At  length  we 
got  on  shore,  and  after  much  difficulty  and  perambulation  disco* 
vered  a  comfortable  hotel  in  the  suburbs;  the  gates  of  the  city 
being  always  shut,  and  the  boom  closed  at  eleven  o'clock. 

Our  hotel  lay  at  the  bottom  of  a  most  beautiful  avenue  of  trees, 
running  parallel  with  the  river  opposite  to  the  ferry.  Our  landlord 
was  very  civil,  and  all  his  servants  spoke  French.  In  the  principal 
apartment  was  a  print  of  Napoleon  in  his  coronation  robes:  I  after- 
wards observed  similiar  prints  in  many  other  houses  in  the  city. 

Many  of  the  principal  merchants  of  Rotterdam  have  country- 
houses  in  these  delightful  suburbs.  I  walked  along  a  line  of  them, 
and  beheld  for  the  first  time  a  specimen  of  the  taste  of  the  Dutch 
in  rural  scenery :  the  gardens,  upon  a  level  with  the  river,  and 
divided  from  it  by  a  high  raised  road,  appeared  to  have  been  all 
designed  by  a  mathematician ;  but  still  their  neatness  and  luxuri- 
ance left  a  pleasing  impression  on  the  mind.  Upon  every  gate,  or 
house,  a  motto  indicative  of  the  mind  of  the  owner,  or  of  the  cha- 
racter of  the  place,  presented  itself,  of  which  the  following  are 
specimens: 

Vreede  is  myn  Lust  Haf  Ziet  op  u  minder 

Peace  is  my  garden.  Look  upon  those  beneath  you. 

Lust  en  rust  N.  B.  This  was  inscribed  upon  a 
Hope  and  repose.  large  house  that  commanded 

some  little  cottages. 

Na  by  Bruten  Wei  te  \  reeda 

Almost  out  of  town.  Very  content,  &c.  &c. 

These  inscriptions  are  seldom  used  but  by  opulent  tradesmen ; 
amongst  the  higher  classes  they  are  considered  to  be  a  little  tinc- 
tured with  vulgarity,  though,  as  I  found,  they  sometimes  indulge 
in  them:  the  villas  of  the  latter  are  frequently  known  by  names 
corresponding  with  those  which  are  applied  to  the  country  resi- 
dences of  the  superior  families  in  England. 

In  the  morning  our  luggage  was  inspected  by  the  proper 
officers,  who  gave  us  very  little  trouble,  and  were  content  with  a 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  11 

trifling  douceur.  The  entrance  to  the  city,  towards  the  river, 
through  the  principal  gate,  called  De  Nieuwe  Hoofds  Poort,  a 
structure  infinitely  more  elegant  than  another  barrier  of  this  city, 
called  De  Oude  Hoofds  Poort,  is  very  handsome. 

The  immediate  transition  from  the  tranquillity  of  the  country 
to  the  busy  hum  of  men  was  very  striking:  the  canals,  with  their 
numerous  draw-bridges,  as  we  proceeded  to  our  city  hotel,  the 
Mareschal  de  Turenne,  were  lined  with  vessels  of  all  sorts  and 
sizes ;  and  notwithstanding  the  war,  every  one  appeared  to  be  en- 
gaged in  some  active  pursuit  or  another. 

Before  hostilities  began,  it  was  no  uncommon  circumstance  to 
see  between  three  and  four  hundred  merchant  ships,  from  En- 
gland alone,  lying  in  these  canals  and  in  the  Maas ;  by  which  a 
vast  commerce  is  carried  on  with  the  greatest  facility  and  econo- 
my, from  the  centre  to  the  extremities  of  the  kingdom ;  and  as 
they  communicate  with  the  Rhine  and  other  large  rivers,  all  the 
productions  of  the  earth  are  conveyed  at  little  expence  to  many 
parts  of  the  continent,  in  a  period  of  tranquillity. 

The  number  of  beautiful  streets  adorned,  as  is  the  case  through- 
out Holland,  with  noble  rows  of  trees,  is  a  spectacle  at  once  novel 
and  beautiful.  The  trees  act  as  a  fan  to  the  houses  in  hot  weather, 
and  their  leaves  are  said  to  inhale  whatever  mephitic  air  may  arise 
from  such  of  the  canals  as  are  stagnant,  and  to  breathe  it  out  again 
with  refreshing  purity. 

In  a  sick  chamber,  fresh  flowers  are  now  thought  salubrious, 
although,  in  no  very  distant  time,  they  were  regarded  by  the  fa- 
culty as  extremely  noxious. 

The  city  derives  its  name  from  the  adjoining  river  Rotte, 
which  unites  with  the  Merwe,  and  from  the  neighbourhood  of 
both  to  the  sea,  renders  the  situation  of  this  town  very  eligible  for 
trade,  commerce,  and  navigation.  The  pleasure-boats  of  some  of 
the  merchants,  which  we  saw  moored  opposite  to  their  houses,  ap- 
peared to  be  very  clumsy,  and  constructed  only  for  smoking  or  nap- 
ping in:  they  were  broad,  high  at  the  head  and  stern,  admitted 
only  of  one  rower,  and  had  a  heavy  cabin  with  moveable  glass 
windows  towards  the  stern. 


12  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

One  of  the  first  appearances  which  impress  a  foreigner  on 
his  arrival  in  Holland  is  that  of  the  houses,  which,  built  of  very 
small  bricks,  very  lofty,  and  filled  with  large  windows,  lean  forward 
as  they  ascend;  to  such  a  rage  has  this  unaccountable  passion  for 
avoiding  an  upright  been  carried,  that  I  am  sure  many  of  them 
must  be  two  or  three  yards  out  of  the  perpendicular:  nothing  can 
be  more  whimsical  than  the  corner  houses  of  most  of  the  streets. 
If  these  houses  had  not  the  appearance  of  being  perfectly  stable, 
from  the  freshness  of  their  outsides,  and  from  their  presenting  no 
fissures,  a  stranger  would  be  induced  from  apprehension  of  per- 
sonal safety,  to  prefer  paddling  his  way  in  the  very  centre  of  their 
canals-  to  walking  in  the  streets.  No  scene  can  at  first  be  more 
novel  and  interesting;  than  that  which  Rotterdam  presents;  masts 
of  ships,  enlivened  by  gay  streamers;  beautiful  stately  trees  and 
lofity  leaning  houses  appear  mingled  together,  and  at  one  view  he 
sees  before  him  the  characteristic  features  of  the  country,  the 
city,  and  the  sea. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.        13 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  BOOMPIES....BAYLE... .PREROGATIVES  OF  GENIUS... .SPANISH 
INSCRIPTIONS. ...A  DUTCH  DINNER. .. .DUTC  H  BEGGARS  ...A  GOOD 
BARGAIN. ...ANECDOTES  OF  SOME  MEMBERS  OF  THE  BATAVIAN 
EXECUTIVE  BODY. ...ANECDOTES  OFTHE  PASSION  OF  THE  DUTCH 
FOR  TRAFFIC. ...ANECDOTE  OF  LORD  NELSON  AND  THE  DEY  OF 
TUNIS. ...HEREDITARY  DRESSES. ...THE  EXCHANGE  OF  ROTTER- 
DAM.. ..ANEC  DOTES  OF  THE  ENGLISH  THERE. ...SEVERAL  ANEC- 
DOTES OF  THE  KING  AND  QUEEN  OF  HOLLAND.. ..PUBLIC  OPI- 
NION  OF  THEM. ...DUTY  OF  A  TOURIST. 

ONE  of  the  first  places  we  visited  was  the  Boomquay,  or 
Boompies,  which  extends  along  the  river,  about  half  a  mile  from, 
the  new  to  the  old  head,  the  two  places  where  the  water  enters  the 
city,  and  fills  the  canals,  which  are  seven  in  number:  this  street 
is  very  broad  and  truly  magnificent ;  and  the  prospect  from  it, 
over  the  river,  and  the  opposite  country,  highly  delightful.  Chey- 
ney-walk  at  Chelsea  is  a  very  humble  resemblance  to  it. 

Many  of  the  houses  are  very  noble,  and  some  of  them  are 
built  of  free -stone,  which  not  being  the  produce  of  the  country, 
must  have  been  brought  to  the  spot  at  a  great  expense.  In  Eng- 
land a  rage  for  expensive  building  had  so  possessed  a  man  whom 
I  knew,  and  who  resided  very  far  from  the  capital,  that  he  had 
many  parcels  filled  with  bricks  and  stones  sent  down  to  his  work- 
men by  the  mail  coach. 

The  Boom-quay  forms  a  fine  mall  for  the  inhabitants  of  the 
city,  and  is  chiefly  the  residence  of  the  most  opulent  and  elegant 
families.  An  English  nobleman,  Lord  North  and  Gray,  had 
many  years  since  a  superb  house  here,  which  he  became  entitled 
to  in  right  of  his  wife,  a  rich  Dutch  lady. 

Upon  this  quay  once  resided  the  celebrated  Bayle,  the  author 
of  the  Historical  and  Critical  Dictionary,  and  professor  of  philoso- 
phy and  history  at  Rotterdam,  from  which  he  was  removed  by 


14        TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

the  influence  of  M.  Jurieu,  who  in  a  violent  controversy  with  him, 
had  illiberally  misrepresented  his  principles,  and  driven  him  to 
great  penury.  The  writings  of  this  extraordinary  man  are  so  ver- 
satile and  so  adapted  to  every  one's  taste,  that  he  secured  readers 
amongst  divines,  philosophers,  physicians,  wits,  and  libertines  in 
every  part  of  Europe.  Saurin,  with  that  antithesis  for  which  he 
was  more  known  than  for  the  elegance  of  his  compositions,  thus 
describes  him :  "  Bayle  was  one  of  those  extraordinary  men,  whom 
it  is  difficult  to  reconcile  with  themselves,  and  whose  opposite 
qualities  give  us  room  to  doubt  whether  we  ought  to  consider  him 
as  the  best,  or  the  worst  of  men.  On  the  one  hand  he  was  a  great 
philosopher,  who  knew  how  to  distinguish  truth  from  falsehoood, 
who  could  at  one  view  perceive  all  the  consequences  of  a  principle, 
and  the  chain  or  series,  in  which  they  were  linked  together ;  on 
the  other,  he  was  a  great  sophist,  who  undertook  to  confound 
truth  with  falsehood,  and  knew  how  to  deduce  false  inferences 
from  the  hypothesis  he  advanced.  On  the  one  hand,  he  was  a  man 
of  learning  and  of  knowledge,  who  had  read  all  that  could  be  read, 
and  remembered  all  that  could  be  remembered ;  on  the  other,  he 
was  ignorant,  or  affected  to  be  so,  of  the  most  common  things,  in 
respect  of  which  he  proposed  such  difficulties,  as  had  been  an- 
swered a  thousand  times.  On  the  one  hand  he  attacked  the  most 
eminent  men.  opened  a  large  field  of  labour  for  them,  led  them 
through  the  most  difficult  ways,  and  if  he  did  not  get  the  better  of 
them,  at  least  gave  them  great  trouble,  to  get  the  better  of  him ; 
on  the  other,  he  made  use  of  the  worst  of  authors,  to  whom  he 
was  lavish  of  his  praise,  frequently  disgracing  his  writings  by 
citing  such  names  as  no  learned  man  ever  mentioned."  So  speaks 
Saurin  of  this  able  man,  whose  abilities,  however,  have  been  ho- 
noured with  the  usual  homage ;  they  have  been  allowed  to  conse- 
crate the  place  in  which  they  flourished.  No  stranger  can  visit  the 
Boom-quay  without  being  informed  that  Bayle  resided  there,  and 
without  having  the  spot  where  his  little  mansion  stood  pointed  out 
to  him.  It  is  the  noble  nature  of  genius  to  requite  the  ingratitude 
of  a  thankless  country,  by  shedding  upon  it  unquenchable  lustre, 
and  raising  it  in  the  rank  of  nations. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  15 

In  several  parts  of  the  city,  memorials  of  the  inroads  of  the 
Spaniards  are  traceable,  not  only  in  the  forms  of  several  of  the> 
buildings,  but  in  several  mottos  and  inscriptions  in  their  language, 
which  are  still  legible  in  many  of  the  old  buildings,  in  this  and  in 
other  cities. 

The  number  of  Jews  in  Rotterdam  is  very  great,  and  many  of 
ffiem  are  of  high  respectability,  and  as  much  distinguished  for  their 
integrity,  as  their  industry  and  opulence. 

Soon  after  my  arrival  I  had  the  pleasure  of  dining  with  one  of 
the  first  families  of  that  persuasion:  our  host,  a  very  amiable  man, 
gave  us  a  true  Dutch  dinner,  consisting  of  nearly  fifteen  different 
sorts  offish,  exquisitely  dressed,  and  served  up  with  vegetables  of 
various  kinds.  In  Holland,  in  preparing  the  fish  for  the  kettle,  the 
head,  fins,  and  tail,  are  generally  cut  off.  In  this  city  port  wine  is 
scarcely  ever  drank ;  it  is  by  no  means  gratifying  to  a  Dutch  pa- 
late. Some  was  presented  to  me  at  a  dinner  where  I  was,  but  it 
was  so  old  that  all  its  flavour  had  evaporated.  The  principal  wines 
drank  are  Claret,  Madeira,  and  the  Rhine  wines.  I  found  the  bread 
in  Holland  every  where  excellent,  and  the  coffee  every  where  bad. 

I  soon  found  that  the  received  opinion  of  there  being  no  beggars 
in  Holland  is  perfectly  erroneous.  I  was  frequently  beset  by  these 
sons  and  daughters  of  sorrow  or  idleness,  who  preferred  their  peti- 
tion with  indefatigable  pursuit,  but  in  so  gentle  a  tone,  that  it  was 
evident  they  were  fearful  of  the  police.  They  are  abundant,  but  or- 
derly. It  was  observed  by  some  English  in  Holland,  that  a  Dutch 
beggar  is  too  wise  to  waste  his  breath  by  asking  alms  of  a  Dutch- 
man, and  that  relief  is  only  sought  from  strangers:  the  fact  is, 
there  are  so  many  asylums  for  paupers,  that  a  Dutchman  acquain- 
ted with  the  legislative  provision  made  for  them,  always  considers 
a  beggar  as  a  lawless  vagabond. 

For  this  reason,  and  this  alone,  Charity  seldom  takes  an  airing 
in  Holland:  towards  the  wretched,  in  the  streets,  the  rich  in  this 
country 

"  Resemble  sweet  instruments  hung*  up  in  cases, 
"  That  keep  their  sounds  to  themselves." 

Tivion  of  Athens,  Act.  I.  Sc.  5j? 


1Q  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

In  no  country  of  its  size,  as  will  appear  in  the  course  of  this 
journal,  are  there  more  charitable  institutions,  and  at  the  same  time 
a  stronger  appetite  for  accumulation.  To  make  a  good  bargain  is 
considered  by  many  a  Dutchman  as  the  highest  achievement  of  the 
human  mind.  As  a  proof  that  they  never  suffer  their  national 
animosities  to  interfere  with  individual  interest,  the  reader  may 
rely  on  the  following  anecdote. 

In  an  early  stage  of  the  last  war,  when  the  Dutch  government 
rigorously  prohibited  the  importation  of  English  manufactures, 
some  members  of  the  executive  body  entered  into  an  agreement 
with  a  mercantile  house  in  Rotterdam,  to  supply  the  requisition 
for  the  clothing  of  the  French  army,  by  a  clandestine  importation 
of  cloth  from  England,  and  the  looms  of  Yorkshire  accordingly 
clothed  ten  thousand  French  soldiers. 

The  same  commercial  spirit  was  observed  by  the  Dutch  many 
years  since  to  us,  when,  in  a  severe  battle  between  the  fleets  of 
the  Republic  and  Great  Britain,  during  a  cessation  of  the  fight, 
for  the  mutual  accommodation  of  repairing  the  damages  sustain- 
ed, some  of  the  officers  of  the  Dutch  ships  actually  offered  the 
captains  of  some  of  ours,  supplies  of  gunpowder  at  an  advanced 
price,  in  consequence  of  understanding  that  two  or  three  of  our 
ships  had  nearly  exhausted  their  stores  of  it. 

The  Dey  of  Tunis  made  a  more  whimsical  offer;  when  the 
heroic  and  immortal  Nelson  threatened  to  blow  his  capital  about 
his  ears,  the  Dey  sent  to  his  lordship  to  know  the  cost  of  every 
•shot  that  would  be  fired,  the  answer  was  nearly  a  pound  sterling; 
upon  which  the  Dey  said,  if  his  lordship  would  calculate  how 
many  shots  would  be  necessary  to  demolish  his  capital,  and  send 
him  half  the  amount  in  good  bills,  he  would  destroy  it  himself. 

I  nowhere  saw,  except  amongst  the  skippers,  that  mighty 
mass  of  breeches,  in  which  my  expectation  had  in  part  clothed 
every  Dutchman's  frame :  but  the  appearance  of  many  of  the  men 
in  long  flowered  waistcoats,  and  trunk  hose,  and  the  females  in 
short  plaited  petticoats,  blue  stockings,  and  large  round  silver 
buckles  projecting  over  either  side  of  the  foot,  was  very  whim- 
sical. Many  of  their  dresses  are   hereditary;  and .  grandfather, 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  17 

{ather,  and  son,  have  in  regular  succession  proceeded  to  the  altar 
in  the  same  nuptial  breeches.  The  quays  of  Rotterdam  are  very- 
spacious,  and  every  where  embellished  with  trees ;  and  the  canals 
deeper  and  cleaner  than  in  any  other  of  the  large  cities  in  the 
kingdom. 

In  consequence  of  the  features  of  every  street  being  so  similar, 
a  stranger  finds  uncommon  difficulty  in  reaching  the  place  of  his 
destination,  or  in  returning  to  his  hotel,  without  a  guide. 

After  having  secured  a  bed-room  and  deposited  our  luggage  at 
the  Mareschal  de  Turenne,  kept  by  M'\  Crabb,  an  Englishman, 
who  renders  the  character  of  a  maitre  d'hotel  eminently  respecta- 
ble, by  his  attention  to  foreigners  of  every  description,  and  to  his 
own  countrymen  in  particular,  by  moderate  charges  and  excellent 
accommodations,  we  proceeded  to  the  Exchange  at  two  o'clock, 
when  the  merhants  assemble. 

This  building  is  an  oblong  square  with  a  covered  walk  on  each 
side,  and  is  plain  and  handsome.  It  was  finished  in  1736.  I  was 
astonished  to  find  it  crowded  in  every  part,  and  presenting,  in  the 
activity  and  bustle  which  were  displayed,  every  appearance  of  a 
great  commercial  country  in  a  high  state  of  prosperous  tran- 
quillity. 

In  this  Babel  assembly  the  greatest  interest  for  a  successful 
termination  of  the  negotiation  between  France  and  England  seemed 
anxiously  to  prevail;  and  induced  a  stranger  like  myself  to  think 
that  the  interests  of  Holland  were  pretty  closely  interwoven  with 
those  of  England. 

The  arrival  of  English  papers,  and  of  couriers  from  Paris,  never 
failed  to  excite  a  strong  sensation  from  one  end  of  the  city  to  the 
other.  Upon  the  exchange  I  saw  several  Englishmen  transacting' 
business;  and  such  is  the  respect  which  the  Dutch  bear  towards 
us,  that  we  soon  found  the  suspicion  of  our  being  English  rather 
increased  than  damped  the  civilities  we  experienced. 

As  Rotterdam  may  be  considered,  as  Bonaparte  has  recently- 
described  the  city  of  Hamburg,  une  ville  Anglaise^  in  consequence 
of  so  many  English  families  having  settled  there  before  the  revo- 
lution, and  also  of  the  proximity  of  its  port  to  England,  it  wa's 

■C 


18  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

with  surprise  I  found  that  the  new  ruler  and  form  of  government 
were  so  popular  as  they  are  in  this  city. 

In  the  years  1794  and  1795  the  progress  of  the  French  arms, 
excited  uncommon  consternation  in  this  city,  in  which  a  higher 
veneration  for  the  stadtholderian  government,  as  established  under 
the  influence  of  England  and  Prussia  in  1787,  existed,  than  in  any 
other  city  in  the  United  Provinces. 

As  the  French  advanced,  the  principal  English  families  fled 
with  great  precipitation,  and  were  followed  by  many  of  the  Dutch: 
their  flight  was  in  the  most  inclement  part'cf  a  winter  remarkably 
rigorous,  and  they  were  obliged  to  pass  over  frozen  canals,  rivers 
and  deep  snows,  many  by  the  most  wretched  open  conveyances, 
in  their  way  to  Helvoetsluys,  where  they  embarked  for  that  coun- 
try, which,  since  the  time  of  the  first  Charles,  has,  thank  Heaven! 
been  neither  the  seat  of  war,  nor  of  revolutionary  phrenzy. 

A  short  time  before  we  visited  Rotterdam,  we  heard  that  the 
king  and  queen  had  visited  that  city,  the  only  one  which  they  had 
then  honoured  with  their  presence,  except  the  seat  of  the  royal 
residence  at  the  Hague. 

Upon  their  arrival  in  the  city,  their  majesties  and  the  two 
princes,  in  their  carriages,  attended  by  their  suite  and  an  escort  of 
horse,  proceeded  to  the  Exchange,  where  they  were  waited  upon 
by  the  principal  functionaries  and  a  deputation  of  the  most  opu- 
lent merchants  of  the  city.  Their  majesties  appeared  to  be  much 
affected  by  the  very  flattering  manner  in  which  they  were  received. 

The  queen,  who  is  always  mentioned  by  those  who  have  had 
the  honour  of  knowing  her  before  and  since  the  wonderful  eleva- 
tion of  so  many  branches  of  her  family,  as  a  most  amiable,  en- 
lightened, and  accomplished  woman,  very  much  gratified  some  of 
the  members,  and  the  nation  at  large,  by  observing  upon  the  Ex- 
change :  "  We  are  deeply  penetrated  by  the  cordiality  with  which 
we  have  been  received  in  the  country ;  as  strangers  we  could  not, 
and  did  not  expect  such  a  reception;  but  we  hope  to  remain  long 
enough  amongst  you  to  secure  your  esteem,  by  doing  all  the  good 
in  our  power."  This  short  address,  delivered  with  that  grace  and 
manner,  which,  I  am  informed,  are  so  characteristic  of  her  ma* 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  19 

.jesty,  captivated  all  the  Dutchmen  present,  and  spread  with  great 
celerity  through  every  part  of  the  city,  and  contributed  to  raise 
her  very  high  in  the  public  estimation. 

From  the  Exchange  their  majesties  proceeded  to  the  Admi« 
ralty,  and  were  gratified,  for  the  first  time  in  their  lives,  with 
seeing  a  man  of  war,  a  seventy-four,  launched ;  and  after  partaking 
of  a  splendid  collation,  they  passed  through  the  principal  streets 
in  a  single  carriage,  unattended  by  their  body  guard.  On  this 
public  occasion,  the  only  external  ornament  which  the  king  wore 
was  the  star  of  the  legion  of  honour. 

In  the  department  of  the  admiralty,  the  king  has  effected 
many  wise  and  salutary  regulations.  He  has  abolished  all  the 
•sinecure  offices  attached  to  it,  reduced  overgrown  salaries,  and 
doubled  the  hours  of  labour  of  the  clerks,  who  were  before  almost 
receiving  the  wages  of  idleness  from  the  country.  By  this  firm 
and  sagacious  conduct,  the  king  has  already  produced  a  saving  to 
the  state  of  two  millions  sterling  a  year. 

Before  the  new  constitution,  which  will  be  given  hereafter, 
was  finally  adjusted,  the  king  declared,  that  the  national  debt 
should  be  most  sacredly  respected,  and  its  guarantee  forms  ac- 
cordingly a  permanent  feature  in  that  system,  and  measures  have 
been  adopted  for  its  speedy  liquidation.  The  king  has  also  chosen 
two  gentlemen  of  high  respectability  from  the  body  of  the  mer- 
chants of  Rotterdam  to  be  members  of  his  council. 

Before  these  circumstances,  and  the  previous  unsettled  condi- 
tion of  the  country  are  known  or  reflected  upon,  it  would  appear 
somewhat  paradoxical,  that  as  the  interests  of  the  Dutqh  have  a 
bias  in  favour  of  England,  and  as  their  government  is  of  French 
construction,  the  ruler  who  has  been  placed  over  them  by  events 
little  less  than  miraculous,  could  ever,  and  especially  in  so  short 
a  time,  have  made  himself  popular  ;  but  to  the  fact  I  pledge  my- 
self, upon  the  authority  of  some  of  the  most  respectable  and 
enlightened  Dutchmen  in  different  parts  of  Holland,  repeatedly 
renewed  to  me. 

It  is  a  subject  of  congratulation  with  every  Englishman,  that  a 
similar  spirit  of  economy  and  retrenchment  animates  the  minds 


20        TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

of  the  present  administration,  which,  during  the  short  period  of 
its  elevation  to  power,  has  purified  many  of  the  public  offices  of 
slothful  supernumeraries,  and  has  to  its  eternal  honour  refused  to 
augment  the  public  burthens  by  reversionary  pensions. 

By  such  instances  of  public  virtue,  and  the  wisdom,  vigour, 
and  sound  policy,  which  reign  in  the  councils  of  his  majesty,  the 
British  empire  may  ultimately  triumph  over  its  enemies,  or  at 
least  be  preserved  entire  amidst  the  general  wreck  of  other  nations. 

The  king  of  Holland  was  described  to  me  to  resemble  his 
brother  Napoleon,  very  strongly  in  size,  complexion,  manner, 
thoughtful  taciturnity,  and  abstemiousness :  he  is  a  great  invalid, 
and  has  received  some  severe  paralytic  shocks  in  one  of  his  arms, 
for  which,  as  well  as  for  the  general  extreme  delicate  state  of  his 
health,  he  has  been  obliged  to  visit  the  baths  of  Wisbaden,  and  to 
drink  the  waters  of  the  Spa;  which  prevented  his  remaining  in 
Holland  but  for  a  very  short  time,  after  the  constitution  had  placed 
him  on  the  throne,  and  he  was  absent  when  I  was  there. 

The  king  has  the  reputation  of  being  much  pleased  with  the 
English  character,  and  very  fond  of  the  society  of  Englishmen ;  a 
gratification  which  a  series  of  adverse  circumstances  has  preven- 
ted him  from  indulging  in  for  some  time  past.  I  remember,  when 
I  was  at  Paris,  during  the  brief  pause  of  war,  that  just  gave  "  a 
time  for  frighted  peace  to  pant,"  he  was  never  more  happy  than 
when  he  had  one  of  our  countrymen  at  his  splendid  and  hospita- 
ble table. 

The  queen  is,  as  she  was  also  described  to  me,  a  brunette  of 
considerable  beauty,  inclined  to  the  en  bon  fiointy  has  a  face  expres- 
sive of  great  suavity  of  mind,  and  is  highly  accomplished;  she 
particularly  excels  in  dancing,  in  which,  for  the  gracefulness  of 
her  attitudes,  she  is  said  to  be  unrivalled.  To  this  elegant  accom- 
plishment she  is  particularly  attached,  and  when  she  travels,  is 
generally  complimented,  in  any  considerable  town  where  she  stops 
for  a  day  or  two,  with  a  public  ball,  an  attention  by  which  she  is 
always  much  gratified. 

Their  majesties  have  two  princes  who  are  very  young;  the 
eldest  is  called  Napoleon  after  the  emperor.    Should  the  dynasty 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  21 

of  the  Bonapartes  experience  no  convulsive  overthrow,  it  is  gene- 
rally believed  that,  upon  the  demise  of  that  extraordinary  being, 
who  has  pushed  so  many  kings  from  their  thrones  to  make  room  for 
the  members  of  his  own  family,  the  crown  of  France  will  devolve 
upon  this  child. 

In  detailing  these  few  anecdotes,  which  to  me  at  least  were 
interesting,  I  have  been  induced  by  a  veneration  for  truth  alone,  to 
give  a  representation  which,  to  such  as  think  that  nothing  favoura- 
ble, however  deserved,  should  be  reported  of  those  with  whom  we 
are  not  in  amity,  will  not  be  very  palatable.  To  an  enemy,  if  not 
generous,  let  us  at  least  be  always  just.  It  is  as  base  in  principle, 
as  it  is  dangerous  in  politics,  to  depreciate  the  popularity  of  a 
prince  with  whom  we  are  at  war,  for  it  obviously  leads  to  a  mis- 
calculation of  his  influence  upon  his  people,  and  of  the  nature  and 
extent  of  his  strength  and  resources. 

I  abhor  fuming  a  sovereign  with  adulation,  more  especially 
the  ruler  of  a  country  at  war  with  my  own ;  but  it  is  what  I  owe 
to  my  own  country  to  relate  the  fact. 


22  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND'. 


CHAPTER  III. 

COMMISSION    COUNTENANCES... .PHYSIOGNOMIES    COMPARED  ....HQ' 
MAGE  PAID  TO   GENIUS. ...ERASMUS'S    STATUE. ...INSCRIPTION...: 

REVOLUTIONARY    WHIMS LEARNED    GALLANTRY KISSES.... 

ANECDOTES  OF  ERASMUS. ...CATHEDRAL  OF  SAINT  LAWRENCE.... 
THE  RIVAL  ORGAN. ...CHARITY  SCHOOLS PUBLIC  EXAMINA- 
TIONS....EFFECTS  OF  EDUCATION  ON  THE  PUBLIC  MIND. ...HIS 
GRACE  THE   DUKE  OF   BEDFORD. ...MR.  LANCASTER'S  SCHOOL. 

IN  my  way  to  the  celebrated  statue  of  Erasmus,  and  indeed 
wherever  I  mow  d,  almost  every  face  I  met  looked  as  if  it  belong- 
ed to  a  so'.il  more  disposed  to  cultivate  the  figures  of  arithmetic, 
than  of  rhetoric.  I  saw  none  of  those  sprightly  physiognomies, 
which  abound  in  the  large  towns  of  England  or  France,  full  of 
smiles,  of  levity,  and  carelessness,  the  happy  owners  of  which  ap- 
pear as  if  they  basked  and  frolicked  in  the  sunshine  of  every  event. 
Even  the  Spanish  proverb,  "  thoughts  close,  looks  loose,"  is  not 
observed  in  this  city.  A.n  eye  prone  to  the  earth,  a  look  of  settled 
meditation,  and  a  measured  pace  denote  the  Rotterdammer.  Yet 
with  these  appearances  Holland  has  not  been  insensible  to  that 
literary  merit,  in  honour  of  which,  in  other  times  and  regions,  the 
Grecians  and  Romans  raised  temples,  statues,  and  constituted 
public  games,  to  which  the  Persians,  the  Arabians,  the  Turks,  and 
even  the  Chinese,  presented  the  most  magnificent  rewards. 

As  the  inhabitants  of  Languedoc  established  floral  games,  at 
which  they  bestowed  golden  flowers  as  prizes  to  the  fortunate 
poets;  as  Rome  crowned  Petrarch  with  laurel;  as  Ravenna  erected 
a  marble  tomb  to  the  memory  of  Dante,  and  Certaldo  a  statue  to 
Boccaccio;  as  delighted  princesses  touched  with  their  fragrant 
lips  the  cheeks  of  poets;  as  the  Venetians  paid  to  Sannazarius  six 
hundred  pistoles  for  six  verses;  as  Baif  received  a  silver  image  of 
Minerva  from  his  native  city,  and  Ronsard  had  apartments  re&er- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND*  23 

?ed  For  him  in  the  palace  of  Charles  IX.  of  France,  and  also  the 
honour  of  receiving  poetical  epistles  from  that  monarch:  behold  the 
Hollander  has  raised  a  superb  bronze  figure  to  the  memory  of 
that  great  restorer  of  the  Latin  tongue,  Erasmus. 

This  statue  stands  upon  an  arch  crossing  a  canal,  and  is  neaiv 
ly  ten  feet  high;  it  was  finished  in  1622,  and  is  said  to  be  the 
chef-d'oeuvre  of  Henry  de  Keiser,  a  very  celebrated  statuary  and 
architect.  It  has  been  observed,  that  in  the  quality  of  the  different 
statues  which  the  Dutch  raised  to  the  memory  of  Erasmus,  may 
be  traced  the  different  degrees  of  zeal  with  which  his  memory 
was  cherished  by  them. 

In  1540  they  raised  a  statue  of  wood;  seventeen  years  after- 
wards, blushing  for  the  little  respect  they  had  observed,  they  ex- 
changed it  for  one  of  blue  stone;  and  in  sixty -five  years  following 
apotheothized  him  by  the  noble  memorial  of  their  veneration,  which 
I  contemplated  with  equal  admiration  and  delight.  In  1572  the. 
Spaniards,  Vandal-like,  shot  at  the  stone  statue  with  their  mus- 
kets, and  threw  it  in  the  canal,  from  whence  it  was  afterwards  rais-. 
ed  and  again  set  up,  by  order  of  the  magistrates,  upon  the  expul- 
sion of  the  Spaniards;  upon  whom  the  Dutch  retaliated  in  the  most 
spirited  and  gallant  manner,  by  attacking  that  nation  through  her 
colonial  establishments  in  the  East  and  West-Indies,  and  in  Africa, 
and  by  capturing  the  rich  galleons  of  their  merciless  invaders. 

The  bronze  figure  is  clad  in  an  ecclesiastical  habit,  with  an  open 
book  in  his  hand.  Various  attempts  have  at  different  times  been 
made  to  convert  the  sage  into  a  turncoat:  before  the  revolution 
which  expelled  the  stadtholder  and  his  family,  every  concavity  in 
his  dress  was  crammed,  on  certain  holidays,  with  oranges;  during 
the  hey-day  of  the  republican  form  of  government,  amidst  the  cele- 
bration of  its  festivals,  he  was  covered  with  tri-coloured  ribbons, 
when  the  juice  of  the  orange  was  never  suffered  to  pass  the  lips  of 
a  true  patriot!!  Even  the  marigold,  first  consecrated  by  poets  to 
the  Virgin,  and  afterwards  used  as  a  symbol  of  the  House  of 
Orange, 

"  The  marigold,  whose  courtier's  face 
Echoes  the  sun,  and  doth  unlace 
Her  at  his  rise," 


24  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

was  expelled  from  the  gardens  of  the  new  republicans.  Oh,  Liber- 
ty! happy  had  it  been  for  millions,  if  all  the  outrages  perpetrated 
in  thy  hallowed  name  had  spent  themselves  upon  ribbons,  oran-^ 
ges,  and  marigolds! 

Oudaan  the  poet  has  done  honour  to  this  star  of  erudition,  whose 
works  filled  ten  folio  volumes,  and  whose  talents  had  nearly  raised 
him  to  cardinalate  under  Pope  Paul  III.  in  the  following  lines  in 
Dutch,  which  are  inscribed  on  his  pedestal: 

Hier  rees  die  groote  zon,  en  ging  te  Bazel  onder! 
De  Rykstad  eer'  en  vier'  (lien  Heilig  in  zyn  grav; 
Dit  tweede  leeven  geevt,  die't  eerste  leeven  gav: 
JWaar  't  ligt  der  taalen,  't  zout  der  zeden,  't  heerlyk  wonder. 

Waar  met  de  Lievde,  en  Vreede,  en  Godgeleerclheid  praald> 
Word  met  geen  grav  geerd  nog  met  zeen  beeld  betaald : 
Dies  moet  hier't  lugtgewele  Erasmus  overdekken, 
Nadien  geen  mind're  plaats  zyn  tempel  kan  verstrekken! 

Or  thus  in  English : 

Erasmus,  here,  the  eloquent  and  wise, 

That  Sun  of  Learning!  rose,  and  spread  his  beam 

O'er  a  benighted  world,  through  lowering  skies, 
And  shed  on  Basil's  towers  his  parting  gleam. 

There  his  great  relics  lie  :  he  blest  the  place: 

No  proud  preserver  of  his  fame  shall  prove 
The  Parian  pile ;  tho'  fraught  with  sculptur'd  grace : 

Reader!  his  mausoleum  is  above. 

The  reader  may  perhaps  be  pleased  with  the  following  anec- 
dote. When  Erasmus  was  in  England,  which  he  visited  several 
times,  and  where  he  was  honoured  with  the  friendship  of  Arch- 
bishop Warham,  Bishops  Tonstal  and  Fox,  Dean  Colet,  Lord 
Montjoy,  Sir  Thomas  More,  and  other  distinguished  men,  he 
mentions  a  custom  then  prevalent  amongst  the  females  of  this 
country,  the  discontinuance  of  which,  considering  how  much  im- 
proved they  are  since  the  time  of  Erasmus,  and  how  their  natural 
<charms  arc  heightened  by  the  grace  of  the  Grecian  drapery,  must 


Tour  through  Holland.  25 

be  a  subject  of  infinite  regret  with  all  who  love  and  cherish  the 
-sex,  as  it  ought  to  be  loved  and  cherished. 

ERASMUS. 

Sunt  hie  in  Anglia  nymphae  divinis  vultibus,  blandae,  faciles.  Est  pr£s 
terea  mos  nunquam  satis  laudandis,  sive  quo  venias,  omnium  osculis  re- 
ceperis,  sive  discedas  aliquo,  osculis  dimitteris.  Redis  redduntur  suavia; 
venitur  ad  te  propinantur  suavia,  disceditur  abs  te,  dividuntur  basia;  oc- 
curritur  alicui,  basiatur  affatim;  denique  quocumque  te  moveas,  sua- 
viorum  plena  sunt  omnia. 

"  The  women  in  England  are  divinely  beautiful,  affable,  and  good- 
humoured.  There  is  a  custom  also  here,  which  can  never  be  sufficiently- 
commended.  When  you  go  any  where,  you  are  received  by  all  with 
hisses;  when  you  depart,  you  are  dismissed  with  hisses.  On  your  return, 
kisses  are  again  bestowed  on  you.  When  they  visit  you,  kisses  are  present- 
ed; when  they  go  away,  hisses  also  pass  between  you.  If  you  meet  any- 
body, hisses  are  plentifully  distributed.  In  short,  whatever  you  do,  where- 
ever  you  go,  you  are  sure  of  hisses  in  abundance." 

This  is  language  sufficiently  warm  to  prove  that  Erasmus 
Carried  the  feelings  of  a  man  under  the  cowl  of  a  monk.  Eras- 
mus was  very  accomplished :  he  is  said  to  have  imbibed  from 
Hans  Holbein  a  fine  taste  for  painting,  and  to  have  painted  several 
pictures  whilst  in  the  convent  at  Gouda. 

Holbein  owed  the  patronage  of  Henry  VIII.  to  Erasmus,  for 
at  his  request  it  was  that  he  came  to  London,  and  by  him  was  in- 
troduced to  Sir  Thomas  More,  who  employed  and  entertained 
him  in  his  own  house  for  three  years,  during  which  his  likenesses, 
and  the  execution  of  his  works,  attracted  the  notice  of  the  king, 
who  took  him  into  his  service,  and  paid  him  as  long  as  he  lived : 
although  he  once  hazarded  the  severest  displeasure  of  his  royal 
and  turbulent  patron ;  for  being  dispatched  by  Cromwell  to  paint 
the  Lady  Ann  of  Cleves,  Holbein  so  flattered  her  with  his  pencil, 
that  Henry  was  induced  to  marry  her;  but  when  he  discovered 
how  plain  she  really  was,  his  anger  turned  from  the  painter  to 
the  minister,  and  poor  Cromwell  lost  his  head  because  the  un- 
happy Ann  was  denounced  by  her  royal  husband  for  "  a  Flan- 
ders' marc,"  and  not  the  Venus  depicted  by  Holbein. 

I) 


26  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

Amongst  the  churches,  the  only  one  I  saw  worthy  of  notice 
was  the  cathedral  of  St.  Lawrence,  the  tower  of  which  I  ascended, 
and  from  its  top  commanded  the  greater  part  of  the  south  of 
Holland.  The  body  of  the  church  is  very  large.  The  walls,  like  all 
the  rest  of  the  Dutch  churches,  are  saddened  over  with  a  great 
number  of  sable  escutcheons,  and  the  floor  covered  with  rush  bot- 
tom chairs  for  the  congregation  when  assembled.  A  magnificent 
brass  ballustrade  of  exquisite  workmanship,  separates  the  choir 
from  the  nave. 

The  church  is  used  for  various  purposes :  the  synod  of  the 
province  and  the  presbytery  of  the  town  used  to  assemble  in  it ; 
I  was  informed  they  still  continue  to  do  so;  and  at  the  fairs,  booths 
are  erected  in  it. 

The  only  monuments  worthy  of  attention,  and  those  merit  but 
little,  are  erected  to  the  memories  of  Admiral  Cornelius  de  Witt, 
Johannes  a  Brakel,  and  Admiral  Korlenaar.  A  magnificent  organ 
has  been  building  for  some  years  in  this  church :  a  very  large  but 
inadequate  sum  of  money  has  been  subscribed  for  this  superb 
instrument,  which  is  intended  to  rival  the  celebrated  one  at  Haer- 
lem,  but  much  more  money  will  be  necessary  for  that  purpose: 
the  object  of  this  measure  is  not  out  of  homage  to  St.  Cecilia,  but 
from  a  commercial  spirit,  that  repines  at  hearing  of  the  number 
of  persons  who  flock  to  Haerlem  to  hear  its  boasted  instrument, 
by  which  considerable  sums  of  money  in  the  course  of  the  year 
are  expended  in  that  city. 

To  the  honour  of  Holland,  her  seminaries  of  learning  have 
always  been  favourite  objects  with  her  government ;  and  I  was  well 
informed,  that  to  the  further  promotion  of  this  great  and  vital 
source  of  the  morals,  order,  and  glory  of  nations,  the  king  has 
devoted  much  of  his  consideration. 

To  the  choirsof  this  cathedral,  the  scholarsof  the  charity  schools 
of  the  city,  attended  by  their  masters  and  professors,  repair  twice  a 
year  to  undergo  a  public  examination,  in  the  presence  of  the  principal 
officers  of  the  state  resident  in  the  city,  who  are  distinguished  for  their 
learning,  attended  by  some  of  the  clergy.  The  rector,  or  first  profes- 
sor,opens  the  meeting  with  a  short  speech  in  praise  of  Literature  and 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  27 

the  Civil  Magistracy :  suchof  the  pupils  as  are  about  to  remove  to  the 
university,  pronounce  an  oration  in  praise  of  some  illustrious  prince, 
or  of  Erasmus;  on  the  dignity,  ornament,  and  utility  of  sound  learn- 
ing to  ar  state ;  in  praise  of  commerce  and  industry;  on  the  baneful 
consequence  of  passion  and  indolence ;  on  fortitude,  patience,  con- 
cord, and  other  moral  virtues;  they  then  conclude  with  a  compli- 
ment to  their  masters  for  their  care  of  them,  and  to  the  magistrates 
for  honouring  them  with  their  presence ;  and  finally,  take  leave  of 
their  school-fellows,  whom  they  exhort  to  pursue  their  studies  in- 
defatigably,  and  to  live  in  amity  with  each  other. 

The  principal  magistrates  then  present  each  of  them  with  some 
classical  author,  superbly  bound  and  gilt:  the  juniors,  who  are  to 
remove  to  the  higher  classes,  then  come  forward,  and  compliment 
the  magistrates  and  their  masters  in  a  sentence  or  two  either  of 
verse  or  prose.  The  effect  of  this  ceremony  is  increased  by  the 
organ  playing  at  its  commencement  and  close. 

The  reader  will,  I  am  sure,  be  gratified  with  this  brief  descrip- 
tion of  a  plan  so  generative  of  every  good  to  the  nation  which 
adopts  it.  Children,  as  soon  as  they  can  think,  discover  that  they 
are  the  peculiar  care  of  their  country;  they  are  taught  to  respect 
its  laws,  and  by  descanting  upon,  to  imitate  its  most  shining  exam- 
ples, and  to  repay  the  paternal  solicitude  of  the  government,  by 
becoming  useful  or  ornamental  members  of  its  community. 

Amidst  the  political  storms  which  have  agitated  Holland  for  so 
many  years,  more  fatal  to  its  prosperity  than  those  of  the  ocean,  in 
which  it  almost  appears  to  float,  education  has  never  been  neglected: 
to  bestow  upon  his  children  decent  and  useful  instruction,  has  ever 
formed  the  anxious  care  of  the  Hollander:  he  feels  that  whilst  he 
trains  their  minds  to  habits  of  investigation  and  industry,  he  se- 
cures to  them,  under  any  form  of  government,  the  sources  of  sup- 
port and  advancement. 

This  general  diffusion  of  useful  instruction  made  Holland 
what  she  was  in  the  most  shining  periods  of  her  history,  and  when- 
ever its  enlightening  influence  shall  cease  to  be  felt,  as  a  commer- 
cial country  she  must  decline. 


28  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

The  very  few  instances  of  cruelty  which  occurred  in  Holland 
during  the  late  revolution,  have  been  very  justly  attributed  to  the 
happy  effects  of  education.  Whenever  any  disposition  to  severity 
evinced  itself,  an  appeal  to  reason  and  humanity  inclined  it  to  for- 
give: a  memorable  proof  of  this  statement  will  hereafter  appear  in 
the  account  of  some  of  the  revolutionary  movements  which  oc- 
curred at  Amsterdam. 

Even  an  English  merchant  would  be  astonished  to  see  the 
wonderful  arithmetical  attainment  of  stripling  clerks  in  any  of  the 
Dutch  compting-houses,  and  the  quantity  of  complicated  business 
which  they  discharge  in  the  course  of  the  day,  the  order  of  their 
books,  the  rapidity  and  certainty  of  their  calculation,  according  to 
the  commercial  habits  and  exchange  of  different  countries,  and  the 
variety  of  languages  which  they  speak ;  to  which  may  be  added, 
the  great  regularity  and  length  of  their  attendance,  and  the  de- 
cency and  propriety  of  their  deportment. 

With  proper  modifications,  what  an  example  for  our  own 
government,  with  respect  to  the  sister  kingdom,  does  Holland 
present!  And  here  I  cannot  but  lament  my  inability  to  do  justice 
to  the  illustrious  nobleman,  to  whose  care  his  majesty  has  with 
sound  wisdom  and  discrimination  committed  the  administration  of 
his  government  in  Ireland.  In  his  Grace  the  Duke  of  Bedford, 
that  unhappy  and  long  neglected  island  has  found  an  able,  zealous, 
and  resolute  friend  and  patron  ;  who,  shunning  every  ostentatious 
display,  and  almost  the  eye  of  observation,  has  conferred  upon  that 
country  the  salutary  benefits  of  those  measures  which  do  honour 
to  the  christian,  the  statesman,  and  the  governor. 

To  this  nobleman,  and  to  Lord  Somerville,  the  British  nation 
is  indebted  for  having  discerned  the  utility,  and  encouraged  the 
progress  of  a  system  of  education,  which  has  entirely  originated 
from  the  benevolent  zeal  and  ability  of  Mr.  Lancaster,  a  member 
of  a  religious  community  long  known,  as  well  for  the  purity  of 
their  minds  as  for  the  simplicity  of  their  dress  and  deportment, 
who,  after  many  arduous  experiments,  has  matured  a  plan  by  which 
one  thousand  poor  children  may  be  taught  and  governed  by  one 
master,  for  the  trifling  expense  of  live  shillings  per  annum  tor 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  29 

each  child :  a  plan  which  is  eminently  honourable  to  its  merito- 
rious discoverer,  and  promises  fair  to  effect  an  incalculable  ame- 
lioration in  the  habits  and  condition  of  the  rising  generation. 

We  are  not  allowed  upon  the  continent  to  be  a  people  of  much 
creative  faculty ,  but  this  plan  is  solely  of  British  growth,  and  till 
lately  wholly  unknown  to  political  economists  of  every  other 
country.  This  cheap  and  efficacious  system,  which  has  received,  to 
their  lasting  honour,  the  cordial  approbation  and  support  of  their 
Majesties  and  the  Royal  Family,- his  Grace  the  Duke  of  Bedford  is 
anxious  to  introduce  into  Ireland,  wholly  free  from  religious  pro- 
selytism,  and  which  would  powerfully  accelerate  those  com- 
prehensive and  enlightened  measures,  to  which  another  great 
friend  to  Ireland  has,  with  uncommon  promptitude  and  assiduity, 
obtained  the  assent  of  the  imperial  parliament;  I  allude  to  that 
amiable  and  able  statesman  Sir  John  Newport,  the  present  chan- 
cellor of  the  exchequer  of  Ireland* 

May  the  happy  effects  of  such  a  measure  be  as  forcibly  expe- 
rienced in  that  country,  as  they  have  been  in  this  which  1  am 
describing! 


3G  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  COINS PRACTICE  OF  VAILS-GIVING    IN  HOLLAND FRUIT 

AND  VEGETABLE   SELLERS DUTCH    PASSION    FOR  SCRUBBING 

AND  MOPPING. ...WHIMSICAL  SARCASM  OF  A  TRAVELLER. ...SIN- 
GULAR    OFFENCE     OFFERED     TO    A     CHAMBER-MAID DUTCH 

PRINTS  OF  LORD  NELSON. ...TREATMENT  OF  OUR  COUNTRYMEN 
AT  VERDUN DUTCH  COMPARED  WITH  THE  CHINESE PRI- 
VATE COLLECTIONS  OF  PAINTINGS. ...BRIEF  ANECDOTE  OF  THE 
VANDERWERFS. ...REMARKS  ON  DUTCH  AND  FLEMISH  SCHOOLS.... 

DORPT ANECDOTES    OF    DISTINGUISHED    PERSONS    THERE.... 

ANECDOTE  OF  COWPER... .INTERPOSITION  OF   PROVIDENCE. 

IT  is  with  great  reluctance  I  approach  the  subject  of  the  cur- 
rency of  Holland,  but  as  I  hope  to  be  read  by  some  one  who  may 
hereafter  visit  that  country,  as  much  a  stranger  as  I  was  to  it,  it 
is  fit  that  I  should  not  omit  it;  and  I  hereby  apprize  all  my  chair- 
travelling  readers  of  my  intention,  that  they  may  lea/i  over  my 
table  of  coins  if  they  choose  so  to  do. 

SILVER  COINS. 

A  doyt.  Worth  about  half  a  farthing. 

A  stiver.  About  a  penny  at  par.  Twelve  stivers  are  generally,  but 
not  in  every  part  of  Holland,  considered  equal  to  a  shilling* 
This  coin  resembles  a  silver  penny. 

Dubbeltje,  or  two  stiver  piece.  This  coin  is  very  convenient  small 
change. 

A  quarter  guilder,  or  five  stiver  piece.  This  coin,  I  am  told,  is 
very  rare;  I  met  with  none  of  it. 

A  zesthalven,  or  five  stivers  and  four  doyts.  This  is  a  piece  of 
base  metal,  and  equal  to  an  English  six-pence;  it  is  very  con- 
venient for  an  English  traveller,  on  account  of  its  precise  vahie 
being  known. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  32 

Schellingen,  of  various  kinds,  the  size  of  which  determines  the 
value,  unless  they  are  stamped. 

Six  and  a  half  stiver  piece.  A  silver  piece,  little  larger  than  a  six- 
pence, and  the  eighth  part  of  a  rix-dollar. 

Eight  stiver  piece.  A  larger,  but  thinner  piece  than  a  schellingen, 
not  much  in  circulation. 

Ten  stiver  piece.  Worth  half  a  guilder,  very  scarce. 

Twelve  and  a  half  stiver  piece.  Not  much  in  use. 

Thirteen  stiver  piece.  A  Zealand  coin,  and  much  in  circulation. 

A  guilder  or  florin,  or  twenty  stiver  piece.  The  legitimate  coin  of 
Holland,  by  which  they  calculate,  and  is  the  best  silver. 

Twenty-four  stiver  piece,  or  half  a  rix-dollar. 

Twenty-six  stiver  piece. 

Twenty-eight  stiver  piece.  There  are  many  sorts  of  this  in  Hol- 
land :  it  is  usual  to  receive  five  in  a  lot,  each  of  which  is  equal 
to  seven  guilders. 

Thirty  stiver  piece,  or  dollar.  Of  the  value  of  half  a  crown  English, 
and  about  that  size. 

Thirty-one  and  a  half  stiver  piece,  or  half  a  ducatoon.  They  are 
rare. 

Forty  stiver  piece,  or  two  guilder  piece.   Not  common.        ,, 

Fifty  stiver  piece.  The  antient  rix-dollar;  not  much  in  use. 

Fifty -two  stiver  piece,  or  modern  rix-dollar.  Much  in  circulation; 
in  Amsterdam,  and  several  other  places,  they  will  not  pass  for 
more  than  50  or  51  stivers.  In  Zealand  they  are  worth  53. 

Sixty  stiver  piece,  called  a  three  guilder  piece.  Much  in  use. 

Sixty-three  stiver  piece,  or  ducatoon.  Coined  when  the  Spaniards 
were  in  the  country. 

GOLD  COINS. 
A  ducat.  A  beautiful  coin,  of  the  purest  fine  gold.  The  Jews  and  the 
brokers  generally  deal  in  this  coin,  for  which  they  receive  two 
or  three  stivers  profit  on  each.  It  is  thin,  and  remarkably  plea- 
sant to  the  touch ;  and  as  a  proof  of  its  purity,  it  will  bear  to  be 
frequently  bent,  without  breaking.  Upon  almost  every  part  of 
the  continent  this  coin  bears  a  premium,  and  is  current 
ftiroughout  Europe. 


32  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

A  double  ducat  is  ten  guilders  ten  stivers. 

Rider,  fourteen  guilders. 

Half  rider,   seven    guilders.     These    are   current    through    the 

provinces. 

I  would  recommend  the  traveller  to  carry  with  him  a  sufficient 
number  of  guineas  for  his  return  to  England,  as  they  are  scarce 
and  very  dear;  for  twelve  guineas  I  paid  an  exchange  of  35-4 
agio  104  on  145,  or  13/.  4s.  6d. 

COINS. 

No  alteration  has  taken  place  in  the  legends  of  the  coins  of 
Holland.  Since  the  revolution  there  has  been  a  copious  silver  • 
coinage,  but  the  florin  has  remained  the  same  for  more  than  a 
century.  The  old  calendar  is  adhered  to,  with  the  slight  alterations 
rendered  necessary  by  a  change  in  the  name  and  spirit  of  the 
government. 

The  practice  of  vails-giving  still  continues  in  Holland..  Previous 
to  my  going  to  dine  with  some  acquaintances  which  I  made  at 
Rotterdam,  I  was  particularly  reminded  by  a  friend  who  knew  the 
habits  of  the  country,  not  to  forget  to  carry  a  few  florins  with  me, 
-as  the  servant  who  opened  the  door,  upon  my  quitting  the  house, 
would  expect  either  one  or  two  of  those  pieces.  This  abominably 
mean  practice  existed  in  England  in  a  higher  degree,  and  still 
continues  in  part  m  the  shape  of  card  money. 

If  I  remember  correctly,  we  are  indebted  to  Mr.  Hanway  the 
philanthropist,  whose  life  is  given  in  a  very  entertaining  manner 
by  his  pupil  and  protege,  Mr.  Pugh,  for  the  abolition  of  giving 
vails  to  servants ;  previous  to  which,  a  gentleman  of  moderate  in- 
come could  scarcely  afford  to  dine  with  an  opulent  and  fashionable 
friend. 

In  houses  of  great  resort  in  Holland,  servants  are  in  the  habits 
of  purchasing  their  places  of  their  masters  free  of  wages,  solely 
for  the  douceurs  which  custom  rigidly  exacts  from  the  visitor.  At 
one  table  a  friend  of  mine,  a  thoughtless  Englishman,  was  re- 
minded of  his  having  forgotten  the  usage,  by  having  a  quantity  of 
soup  poured  over  his  new  coat  by  accidental  design. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.        33 

In  the  streets  I  was  much  gratified  by  seeing  the  fruit  and  ve- 
getable sellers:  the  fruit  was  abundant,  very  fresh,  and  fine,  and 
such  as  is  usually  to  be  found  at  the  same  season  in  England:  the 
vegetables  are  remarkably  excellent,  and  are  submitted  to  the  eye 
in  the  cleanest  and  most  attractive  manner.  The  Dutch  potatoes 
are  small  and  uncommonly  good ;  I  think  they  are,  if  possible, 
superior  to  those  of  Ireland. 

The  proximity  of  the  houses  to  the  canals  enables  the  Dutch 
women  to  indulge  to  the  full  extent  of  their  wishes,  in  scrubbing 
and  mopping  their  passages  and  rooms,  which  they  do  from  the 
first  to  the  last  blush  of  day ;  indeed,  cleanliness  in  their  houses 
is  carried  to  a  painful  excess.  All  the  strong  features  of  an  English 
Saturday  evening,  viz.  mops,  pails,  scrubbing-brushes,  clusters, 
fullers'  earth,  are  in  active  use  every  hour  of  the  day,  in  Holland  ; 
and  a  little  hand  garden-engine  is  in  perpetual  requisition,  for 
washing  the  outside  of  the  windows. 

But  the  aqua-terrene  nymphs  to  whose  hands  these  right  use- 
ful instruments  are  committed,  appear  to  be  so  solicitous  of  re- 
moving every  feculent  impression  of  the  foot  in  their  white-tiled 
halls,  of  giving  a  brilliant  polish  to  the  brass  knockers,  and  of  pre- 
serving the  furniture  of  the  rooms  unsullied,  that  they  frequently 
neglect  to  purify  their  own  persons  ;  the  charms  of  which  are  to 
be  often  seen  mingled  with,  if  not  obscured  by,  the  accretions  of 
long  neglect  and  inattention. 

Some  travellers  have  extended  similar  remarks  to  the  higher 
classes  of  the  female  sex,  but  unquestionably  with  more  spleen 
than  truth. 

I  had  the  honour  of  being  acquainted  with  many  Dutch  ladies 
of  respectability,  and  found  them  to  be  very  neat  in  their  persons, 
but  my  first  remark  too  powerfully  applies  to  the  lower  orders  of 
the  sex:  they  have  no  leisure  to  attend  to  themselves:  to  them, 
with  a  little  transposition  of  the  sentiment,  may  be  applied  the  face- 
tious lines  that  described  a  once  celebrated  opposition  financier. 

"  It  is  said  that  his  thoughts  have  been  so  long  directed 
"  To  the  national  debt  that  his  own  are  neglected." 

E 


54  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

I  remember  while  at  Amsterdam  a  servant  was  very  angry 
because  I  would  not  suffer  her  to  wash  my  bedroom  every  day.  It 
might  be  supposed  that  in  a  climate  which  must  be  naturally  very 
humid,  the  natives  would  prefer  having  dry  rooms  as  long  as 
possible. 

Upon  some  of  the  canals  I  saw  Rhine  boats  of  extraordinary 
dimensions ;  they  were  principally  laden  with  hardware,  and  their 
owners  and  families  resided  wholly  on  board,  in  a  suite  of  cabins, 
generally  raised  upon  the  deck,  which,  in  point  of  commodious 
arrangement,  of  neatness  and  comfort,  cannot  easily  be  surpassed 
on  shore.  Upon  the  fore  and  aft  part  of  the  deck  their  ware  is  ex- 
posed to  sale,  and  below  are  prodigious  depots  of  the  same  articles. 
These  vessels  are  frequently  six  months  in  their  voyage  up  and 
down  the  Rhine,  in  consequence  of  their  stopping  at  those  cities 
or  towns  situated  on  its  banks,  where  the  owners  are  likely  to  have 
a  market  for  their  merchandize. 

The  reader  will  be  surprised  to  hear  that  in  several  shops  I 
saw  many  prints  of  our  illustrious  Nelson,  in  which  the  artist,  in 
-order  to  prevent  the  beholder  from  doubting  that  he  had  lost  the 
sight  of  one  eye  in  the  service  of  his  country,  had  the  optic  com- 
pletely removed  from  its  socket,  and  left  a  large  frightful  hole,  for 
the  purpose  of  illustrating  this  part  of  his  heroic  history. 

At  an  excellent  table  d'hote,  at  the  Mareschal  de  Turenne, 
I  had  the  happiness  of  meeting  several  of  my  countrymen,  who 
were  returning  to  England  after  a  long  and  most  unjust  detention 
at  Verdun  ;  from  them  I  learned  that  specie  was  abundant  in 
France,  and  that  Napoleon  scarcely  admitted  any  paper  to  be  in 
circulation ;  that  the  roads  were  no  longer  farmed,  but  by  the  aid 
of  a  small  additional  duty  on  salt,  were  put  into  the  finest  condition, 
and  that  no  toll  whatever  was  taken  in  any  part  of  the  empire.  They 
said,  that  in  point  of  restriction,  they  were  not  rigidly  treated,  but 
that  tliere  were  no  bounds  to  the  rapacity  of  those  appointed  t© 
look  after  them,  particular  of  the  gens  d'armes. 

The  collections  of  paintings  in  Rotterdam  are  not  numerous, 
but  very  select:  perhaps  no  people  upon  the  face  of  the  earth  ever 
displayed  a  more  inveterate  and  immoveable  attachment  to  every 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.        35 

thing  of  native  growth  than  the  Dutch,  except  the  Chinese,  who 
consider  improvement  as  penal  innovation,  and  who  confined  a 
native  in  irons  for  life,  because  he  ventured  to  make  a  boat  upon  a 
new  construction,  by  which  it  sailed  faster  than  any  other. 

This  immoveable  adhesion  to  old  customs  in  the  Dutch,  is  the 
more  singular,  as  from  their  commercial  character,  they  have 
been  in  constant  intercourse  with  the  natives  of  every  quarter  of 
the  globe,  the  various  produces  of  which  they  have  brought  into 
their  own  canals,  but  not  for  adoption,  imitation,  or,  generally 
speaking,  for  consumption,  but  solely  for  profitable  re-sale. 

This  spirit,  or  if  you  like  to  call  it  so,  this  amor  fiatrice,  is 
strongly  evinced  in  all  their  collections  of  paintings :  in  only  one 
or  two  private  cabinets  in  Holland  are  to  be  found  any  productions 
of  the  Italian  and  Venetian  schools. 

The  finest  private  cabinet  belongs  to  M.  Vanderpals,  a  very 
rich  and  respectable  merchant;  it  is  principally  filled  by  the 
works  of  those  delightful  masters  Nicholas  Berchem,  and  Lingle- 
bach ;  of  the  former  I  shall  give  a  few  striking  anecdotes  when 
I  reach  Haerlem,  the  place  of  his  nativity ;  of  the  latter  I  shall 
briefly  speak  when  I  describe  Frankfort  on  the  Maine,  where  he 
was  born. 

M.  Vanderpot,  another  wealthy  merchant,  has  also  a  very  large 
and  well  selected  collection  of  the  Dutch  and  Flemish  painters.  M. 
Lockhorst,  a  gentleman  of  commercial  distinction,  has  also  a  fine 
assortment  of  pictures  of  the  same  school. 

The  proprietors  of  these  valuable  productions  are  always  ready 
with  the  greatest  politeness  to  gratify  strangers  with  the  sight  of 
them.  Amongst  other  artists,  Rotterdam  has  the  honour  of  giving 
birth  to  the  Chevalier  Vanderwerf,  who  was  born  in  1659,  and 
received  his  first  instructions  from  Picolet,  a  portrait  painter;  he 
afterwards  studied  under  Eglon  Vanderneer,  under  whom  he  made 
a  rapid  improvement :  he  principally  confined  himself  to  historical 
subjects  of  a  small  size.  The  Elector  Palatine  conceived  a  great 
fondness  for  him,  from  accidentally  seeing  some  of  his  perform- 
ances in  that  style ;  this  prince  honoured  him  with  every  mark  of 
esteem  and  beneficence.   He  conferred  upon  him  the  honour  oi 


36  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

knighthood,  ennobled  his  descendants,  gave  him  a  chain  of  gold 
and  a  medal,  and  his  portrait  set  with  diamonds  of  great  value,  and 
allowed  him  a  noble  pension,  besides  paying  him  munificently  for 
his  productions;  and  upon  the  wife  of  Vanderwerf  presenting  him 
with  a  picture  draws  by  herself,  their  royal  patron  bestowed  upon 
her  husband  six  thousand  florins,  and  on  the  lady  a  magnificent 
toilette  of  silver.  What  a  model  of  munificence  and  liberal  policy 
for  princes !  The  pictures  of  this  eminent  master  are  very  rare, 
and  bear  very  high  prices.  He  is  principally  celebrated  for  the 
roundness  and  relief  of  his  figures;  his  defect  lay  in  a  coldness 
of  colouring.  Upon  his  pictures  he  laboured  with  unsparing  toil, 
which  injured  the  spirit  of  his  productions. 

His  brother,  Peter  Vanderwerf,  was  born  near  Rotterdam  in 
1665,  and  was  the  pupil  of  his  brother  Adrian.  His  principal  sub- 
jects were  portraits  and  conversations,  which  entitled  him  to  rank 
as  a  very  able  artist,  and  as  a  further  proofof  it,  a  small  pictureof  his 
sold,  in  1713,  for  five  hundred  and  fifty  guilders;  and  another,  a 
copy  from  one  of  his  brother  Adrian's,  for  eight  hundred  guilders. 
I  did  not  hear  of  any  living  painter  at  Rotterdam  of  very  distin- 
guished eminence,  a  circumstance  somewhat  singular,  when  it  is 
considered  how  many  fine  artists,  though  ..inferior  to  Vanderwerf, 
that  city  has  produced. 

The  perfection  to  which  the  Dutch  and  Flemish  schools  arri- 
ved, proves  that  great  artists  may  be  formed,  without  the  assistance 
of  great  galleries.  The  present  low  state  of  the  French  school  de- 
monstrates, that  the  most  magnificent  collection  ever  known,  con- 
taining the  renowned  and  exalted  specimens  of  art,  and  opened  to 
the  inspection  of  .every  one  with  a  becoming  spirit  of  liberality, 
cannot  form  gooa  artists.  The  St.  Jerome  of  Corregio,  and  the 
St.  Cecilia  of  Michael  Angelo,  have  created  no  successful  disciple 
since  their  arrival  at  Paris. 

At  Dort,  or  Dordreght,  a  city  of  great  antiquity,  about  nine    • 
miles  from  Rotterdam,  resides  a  celebrated  artist  of  the  name  of 
Varestage,  aged  about  fifty;  he  is  justly  celebrated  for  his  candle- 
light subjects,  which  are  masterly:  one  of  his  works,  a  school  by 
candlelight,  and  a  number  of  children,  is  spoken  of  as  truly  ex- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  37 

quisite.  On  account  of  his  eyes  growing  weak,  he  has  altered  his 
manner,  and  at  present  confines  himself  to  large  figures,  portraits, 
and  conversations. 

As  I  was  informed  there  was  nothing  very  attractive  at  Dort, 
I  did  net  visit  that  city:  it  is  however  famt>us  for  having  given  birth 
to  several  able  men.  John  Gerard  Vossius  studied  there  in  1577, 
and  wrote  a  great  number  of  learned  works;  he  was  the  father  of 
Issac  Vossius,  also  a  man  of  profound  erudition.  Our  King  Charles 
humourously  observed  of  him,  alluding  to  his  credulity  and  infide- 
lity, "  that  he  would  believe  any  thing  but  the  Bible." 

Adrian  Junius  was  born  here  in  1511,  and  was  considered  to 
be  She  of  the  most  profound  men  of  his  country,  and  wrote  many 
learned  works.  Dr.  Johnson  observes  of  Junius,  in  the  preface  to 
his  Dictionary,  ".the  votaries  of  the  northern  muses  will  not  per- 
haps easily  restrain  their  indignation,  when  they  find  the  name  of 
Junius  thus  degraded  by  a  disadvantageous  comparison,  (alluding 
to  Skinner);  but  whatever  reverence  is  due  to  his  diligence,  or  his 
attainments,  it  can  be  no  criminal  degree  of  censoriousness,  to 
charge  that  etymologist  with  want  of  judgment,  who  can  seriously 
derive  dream  from  drama,  because  life  is  a  drama,  and  a  drama  is  a 
dream." 

It  would  be  an  inexpiable  offence  to  pass  over  the  name  of  Al- 
bert Kuyp,  or  Cuyp,  who  was  born  here,  son  of  the  well  known 
Jacob  Gerritze  Kuyp,  whose  pupil  he  was,  and  whom  he  infinitely 
surpassed.  The  former  excelled  in  whatever  he  attempted  to  re- 
present; the  diffusion  of  his  lights  is  as  exquisite  as  it  is  natural, 
and  the  very  times  of  the  day  in  which  he  painted  are  immediately 
discoverable ;  the  misty  haze  of  the  morning,  the  brilliant  lustre 
of  noon,  the  last  blush  of  evening,  and  the  lunar  beam  of  night 
from  his  hands,  presented  the  closest  imitations  of  nature,  and  the 
utmost  powers  the  art  is  susceptible  of.  Most  of  his  subjects  were 
furnished  by  his  native  city  and  the  adjacent  scenery,  particular!'' 
his  celebrated  representation  of  the  cattle-market  at  Dort,  and  the 
square  where  the  troops  exercised :  his  works  are  much  sought 
after,  and  preserved  as  great  curiosities;  and  yet,  though  now  so 
highly  prized,  they  fell  into  so  much  disrepute,  that  not  many 


38  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

years  since,  a  large  collection  of  his  best  pictures   sold  for  eight- 
guineas  apiece,  so  uncertain  is  the  opinion  and  taste  of  the  public. 


He  that  depends 


"  Upon  your  favours,  swims  with  fins  of  lead, 

"  And  hews  down  oaks  with  rushes.   Hang  ye!  Trust  ye? 

"  With  every  minute  you  do  change  a  mind, 

**  And  call  him  noble  that  was  now  your  hate; 

"  Him  vile  that  was  your  garland." 

Coriolanus,  Act  I. 

Even  our  immortal  Cowper  experienced  the  severity  of  popular 
caprice.  So  diffidently  did  he  think  of  his  abilities,  that  he  offered 
his  first  poems  to  his  publisher,  reserving  only  as  a  remuneration,  a 
few  copies  to  present  to  his  friends,  from  an  .apprehension  that 
his  works  might  produce  rather  loss  than  profit.  These  produc- 
tions were,  on  their  first  appearance,  very  rudely  handled  by  most 
of  the  reviewers,  and  nearly  the  whole  of  the  copies  lay  like  so 
much  waste  paper  for  a  long  time  in  the  bookseller's  shop. 

Some  time  afterwards,  not  wholly  discouraged  by  this  mortify- 
ing neglect,  he  presented  through  the  hands  of  a  friend,  his  manu- 
script copy  of  that  divine  poem,  "  The  Task"  upon  the  same  terms, 
the  merit  of  which,  dispelled  the  folly  or  ignorance  of  the  town, 
as  the  rays  of  the  sun  pierce  through  and  absorb  the  mist,  and 
Cowper  took  a  high  rank  amongst  the  living  great  men  of  his  cen- 
tury ;  the  fame  of  "  The  Task"  brought  into  light  his  former  dis- 
carded productions,  and  their  sale  has  ever  since  continued  to  aug- 
ment the  wealth  of  his  bookseller,  the  venerable  and  much  re- 
spected Johnson. 

The  following  very  interesting  and  .extraordinary  circumstance 
occurred  at  Dort  in  the  year  1785,  which  is  still  the  frequent  narra- 
tive of  the  young  and  old  of  that  city,  who  relate  it  with  mingled  sen- 
sations of  awe  and  delight,  as  an  interposition  of  Divine  Providence, 
in  favour  of  a  widow  and  her  family  of  this  city.  This  woman, 
who  was  very  industrious,  was  left  by  her  husband,  an  eminent 
carpenter,  a  comfortable  house  with  some  land,  and  two  boats  for 
carrying  merchandize  and  passengers  on  the  canals.  She  was  also 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.        39 

supposed  to  be  worth  ten  thousand  guilders  in  ready  money,  which 
she  employed  in  a  hempen  and  sail-cloth  manufactory,  for  the 
purpose  of  increasing  her  fortune  and  instructing  her  children  (a 
son  and  two  daughters)  in  useful  branches  of  business. 

One  night  about  nine  o'clock,  when  the  workmen  were  gone  home, 
a  person  dressed  in  uniform,  with  a  musket  and  broad  sword,  came 
to  her  house,  and  requested  a  lodging.  "  I  let  no  lodgings,  friend," 
said  the  widow,  "  and  besides,  I  have  no  spare  bed,  unless  you  sleep 
with  my  son,  which  I  think  very  improper,  on  account  of  your 
being  a  perfect  stranger  to  us  all."  The  spldier  then  shewed  a  dis- 
charge from  Diesbach's  regiment  (signed  by  the  Major,  who 
gave  him  an  excellent  character),  and  a  passport  from  Compte 
Maillebois,  governor  of  Breda.  The  widow,  believing  the  stranger 
to  be  an  honest  man,  called  her  son,  and  asked  him  if  he  would 
accommodate  a  veteran,  who  had  served  the  republic  thirty  years 
with  reputation,  with  part  of  his  bed.  The  young  man  consented  ; 
the  soldier  was  accordingly  hospitably  entertained ;  and  at  a  season- 
able hour  withdrew  to  rest. 

Some  hours  afterwards,  a  loud  knocking  was  heard  at  the  street 
door,  which  roused  the  soldier,  who  moved  softly  down  stairs,  and 
listened  at  the  hall  door,  when  the  blows  were  repeated,  and  the 
door  almost  broken  through  by  a  sledge,  or  some  heavy  instrument- 
By  this  time  the  widow  and  her  daughters  were  much  alarmed 
by  this  violent  attack,  and  ran  almost  frantic  through  different 
parts  of  the  house,  exclaiming  "  Murder !  Murder!"  The  son 
having  joined  the  soldier  with  a  case  of  loaded  pistols,  and  the 
latter  screwing  on  his  bayonet  and  fresh  priming  his  piece,  which 
was  charged  with  slugs,  requested  the  women  to  keep  them- 
selves in  a  back  room  out  of  the  way  of  danger.  Soon  after  the 
door  was  bursted  in,  two  ruffians  entered,  and  were  instantly  shot 
by  the  son,  who  discharged  both  his  pistols  at  once.  Two  other. 
associates  of  the  dead  men  immediately  returned  the  fire,  but> 
without  effect,  when  the  intrepid  and  veteran  stranger,  taking  im- 
mediate advantage  of  the  discharge  of  their  arms,  rushed  on  them 
like  a  lion,  ran  one  through  the  body  with  his  bayonet,  and  whilst 
fhe  other  was  running  away,  lodged  the  contents  of  his  piece  be- 


40  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

twcen  his  shoulders,  and  he  dropped  dead  on  the  spot.  The  son 
and  the  stranger  then  closed  the  door  as  well  as  they  could,  re- 
loaded their  arms,  made  a  good  fire,  and  watched  till  day-light, 
when  the  weavers  and  spinners  of  the  manufactory  came  to  resume 
their  employment,  who  were  struck  with  horror  and  surprise  at 
seeing  four  men  dead,  on  the  dunghil  adjoining  the  house,  where 
the  soldier  had  dragged  them  before  they  closed  the  door. 

The  burgomaster  .and  his  syndic  attended,  and  took  the  depo- 
sitions of  the  family  relative  to  this  affair.  The  bodies  were  buried 
in  a  cross-road,  and  a  stone  erected  over  the  grave,  with  this  in- 
scription :  "  Here  lie  the  remains  of  four  unknown  ruffians,  who 
deservedly  lost  their  lives,  in  an  attempt  to  rob  and"  murder  a 
worthy  woman  and  her  family.  A  stranger  who  slept  in  the  house, 
to  which  Divine  Providence  undoubtedly  directed  him,  was  the 
principal  instrument  in  preventing  the  perpetration  of  such  horrid 
designs,  which  justly  entitles  him  to  a  lasting  memorial,  and  the 
thanks  of  the  public.  John  Adrian  de  Gries,  a  discharged  soldier 
from  the  regiment  of  Diesbach,  a  native  of  Middleburgh  in  Zea- 
land, and  upwards  of  seventy  years  old, was  the  David  who  slew  two 
of  these  Goliaths,  the  rest  being  killed  by  the  son  of  the  family.  In 
honorem,  a  gratitudine  ergo,  Dei  optimi  maximi,  pietatis  et  inno- 
cents summi  protectoris,  magistratus  et  concilium  civitatis  Dor- 
trechiensis  hoc  signum  poni  curavere,  xx.  die  Nov.  annoque  salu- 
tis  humanse,  1^85." 

The  widow  presented  the  soldier  with  one  hundred  guineas, 
and  the  city  settled  a  handsome  pension  on  him  for  the  rest  of  his 
life. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.       41 


CHAPTER  V. 

LICENSED  BROTHELS. ...REMARKS  UPON  THEM. ...DUTCH  LITERARY 
MEETING  DESCRIBED. ...SPITTING  POTS. ...PIPES,  DUTCH  EXTRA- 
VAGANT IN  THEM. ...SMOKING. ...HISTORICAL  ANECDOTE  OF  TO- 
BACCO....GENERAL  TEMPERANCE  OF  THE  DUTCH. ...ARBITRARY 
POWER  OF  POLICE  MASTERS. ...TRAVELLING  IN  HOLLAND  VERY 

CHEAP    AND    VERY    AGREEABLE CANAL    TO    DELFT DUTCH 

SAWING  MILLS.. ..ENGLISH  CIRCULAR  MASONRY  MILLS. ...DUTCH 
LANGUAGE... .SPECIMEN  OF  THE  ENGLISH,  DUTCH,  AND  GER- 
MAN LANGUAGES. 

IT  is  matter  of  surprise  to  the  contemplative  traveller  to  ob- 
serve in  a  country  apparently  so  mechanically  moral  and  regular 
as  Holland,  the  glaring  defects  of  the  most  loose  and  meretricious 
government:  in  the  hearts  of  the  finest  cities  are  to  be  found 
brothels  surpassing  in  iniquity  all  such  seats  of  impurity  in  any 
other  nation,  in  which  the  horrible  novelty  of  the  most  savage  op- 
pression is  united  to  a  public,  licensed,  and  authorised  display  of 
vice  and  profligacy.  I  mean  the  spill-houses,  to  one  of  which  my 
laquais  de  place  conducted  me  about  ten  o'clock  at  night,  when 
those  scenes  of  revelry  open.  In  a  street,  in  an  inferior  quarter  of 
the  town,  the  sound  of  fiddles  and  dancing  announced  the  approach 
to  one  of  these  houses  :  presently  my  guide  stopped  before  one  of 
them,  into  the  saloon  of  which  he  introduced  me  by  pulling  aside 
a  curtain  drawn  before  the  door,  near  which,  in  a  little  raised  or- 
chestra, two  fiddlers  were  scraping;  upon  benches  at  the  other 
end  of  the  room  were  seven  or  eight  females,  painted  and  dressed 
in  all  their  finery,  with  large  silver  buckles,  loose  muslin  robes, 
massy  gilt  ear-rings,  and  ornaments  of  the  same  metal  round  the 
head.  Most  of  them  looked  very  jaded.  As  soon  as  I  entered,  a 
bottle  of  wine  and  glasses,  and  pipes  and  tobacco,  were  put  before 
me,  for  which  I  paid  a  florin,  and  which  is  .considered  as  the  pre-, 
inium  of  admission. 

F 


42  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

These  miserable  wretches  were  all  prostitutes  and  prisoners,  cois* 
fined  to  this  haunt  of  viee,  and  never  suffered  to  pass  its  threshhold 
until  enabled,  out  of  the  wages  of  prostitution,  to  redeem  themselves. 
The  way  in  which  they  are  ensnared  into  this  brothel-dungeon  is 
worthy  of  notice.  The  keeper  of  it  hears  of  some  girl  who  is  in 
debt,  frequently  occasioned  by  dressing  beyond  her  means,  to  set 
off  her  person  to  advantage  at  some  of  the  music-rooms  or  other 
public  places;  he  approaches  her,  pities  her,  offers  her  money  to 
discharge  her  debts,  advances  her  more  for  immediate  and  future 
purposes;  she  becomes  his  debtor:  in  a  short  time  he  seizes  upon 
her  person,  and  bears  her  away  to  his  bagnio,  and  receives  the 
profligate  produce  of  her  disgrace  and  infamy ;  and  this  scene  of 
compound  enormity  is  tolerated  by  the  government,  and  has  so 
continued  for  many  years,  till  time  has  hardened  the  cruel  practice 
into  a  custom  which  has  become  inoffensive  to  the  people. 

One  of  these  poor  wretches  approached  me;  the  affected 
gaiety  of  her  deportment,  so  entirely  discordant  with  the  genuine 
feelings  of  a  mind  exposed  to  scenes  of  such  humiliating  profli- 
gacy, was  in  no  little  degree  distressing;  but  I  observed  she  drank 
the  wine  I  gave  her  with  a  heavy  heart,  and  some  money  I  pre- 
sented her  with,  excited  expressions  of  gratitude,  but  no  emotions 
of  delight ;  from  which  I  concluded  that  she  was  merely  the  chan- 
nel through  which  my  present  would  pass  to  her  brutal  gaoler;  an 
apprehension  which  was  confirmed  to  me  by  my  lacquey  upon  my 
quitting  this  scene  of  complicated  wretchedness. 

It  is  a  curious  circumstance  that  to  Solon,  the  wisest  amongst 
the  wise  men  of  Greece,  is  attributed  the  origin  of  brothels :  his 
motives  may  be  appreciated  in  the  following  extracts.  "  Nicandre 
raconte  dans  le  troisieme  livre  des  choses  remarquables  de  Colo- 
phon, que  le  legislateur  Solon  a  ete  le  premier  qui  ait  bati  un 
temple  a  Venus  Pandemos.  Philemon  (Athenee  liv.  xiii.  p.  569.) 
loue  beaucoup  la  sage  indulgence  que  Solon  a  temoignee  par  cette 
loi  pour  la  foiblesse  humaine :  '  Solon,  tu  as  vraiment  ete  le  bien- 
faiteur  du  genre  humain !  car  on  dit  que  e'est  toi  qui  a  le  premier 
pense  a  une  chose  bien  advantageuse  au  peuple  ou  plutot  au  salut 
public  Oui,  e'est  avec  raison  que  je  dis  ceci,  lorsque  je  considere 


-   TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLANB.  43 

aotre  ville  pleine  de  jeunes  gens  cTun  temperament  bouillant,  et  qui 
en  consequence  se  porteroient  a  des  exces  impermissables.  C'est 
pourquoi  tu  as  achete  des  femmes,  et  les  as  placees  clans  des  lieux, 
ou,  pourvues  de  tout  ce  qui  leur  est  necessaire,  elles  deviennent 
communes  a  tous  ceux  qui  en  veulent.'  "  "  Nicander  relates  in  the 
third  book  of  remarkable  circumstances  of  Colophon,  that  the  le- 
gislator Solon  was  the  first  who  built  a  temple  to  Venus  Pandemos. 
Philemon  praises  much  the  wise  indulgence  which  Solon  has 
shown  by  this  law  to  human  infirmity.  *  Solon!  thou  hast  truly- 
been  the  benefactor  of  the  human  race !  for  it  is  said  that  thou  first 
thought  of  a  measure  greatly  beneficial  to  the  people,  or  rather  to 
the  public  good.  Yes,  I  say  it  with  reason,  when  I  see  our  town 
full  of  young  men  of  warm  constitutions,  and  who  in  consequence 
would  indulge  in  censurable  excesses.  Therefore  thou  hast  pur- 
chased women,  and  fixed  them  in  places,  where,  provided  with 
every  thing  they  want,  they  become  accessible  to  all  who  desire  an 
intercourse  with  them/' 

The  Dutch  are  so  familiarized  to  these  scenes,  that  parents 
frequently  carry  their  children  to  them;  from  the  hope  of  pre- 
serving them  from  vicious  propensities,  by  placing  before  their 
eyes  the  nauseous  and  frightful  images  of  suffering  profligacy. 
Such  an  experiment  in  morals  would  be  somewhat  dubious  in  its 
operations;  for  vice  like  deformity  ceases  to  disgust  in  proportion 
as  it  is  contemplated.  Such  ideas  never  enter  the  sober  brains  of 
such  visitors ;  they  go  to  spend  an  hour,  which  to  them  is  mirth- 
ful, and  the  poor  wretches  I  have  mentioned  augment  the  plea- 
sures of  the  scene  by  the  gaudiness  of  their  finery,  and  the  com- 
pany add  to  its  vivacity.  In  the  beauty  of  its  plumage,  "  they  for- 
get the  dying  bird." 

Through  considerable  interest  I  was  enabled  to  see  the  Rasp 
House,  or  prison  for  male  and  female  culprits  $  it  is  a  large  qua- 
drangular building;  most  of  the  cells  and  rooms  look  towards  the 
yard,  which  is  considerably  below  the  level  of  the  street.  The  food 
is  wholesome  and  abundant,  and  the  chambers  are  kept  very  neat. 
I  saw  in  this  place  nothing  objectionable  but  the  period  allowed  to 
the  prisoners  for  taking  exercise,  which  is  infinitely  too  short  and 


44  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

infrequent,  each  person  being  allowed  to  walk  in  the  yard  only 
once  in  the  week ;  the  consequence  is,  that  few  of  the  prisoners 
looked  healthy. 

Holland  is  justly  celebrated  for  its  public  charities.  In  Rotter- 
dam, before  the  last  war,  there  were  many  benevolent  institutions, 
some  of  which  have  inevitably  languished,  and  others  expired,  in 
consequence  of  the  political  convulsions  of  the  country  and  the 
usually  impoverishing  effects  of  long  hostility. 

In  the  streets  I  was  surprised  to  see  the  horses  shod  in  the 
shameful  and  clumsy  manner  they  are:  the  shoe  is  behind  elevated 
to  a  considerable  height,  so  that  the  poor  animal  must  suffer  from 
the  position  into  which  he  is  always  forced,  resembling  that  of  a 
lady  in  a  high-heeled  pair  of  shoes  of  the  last  century. 

At  my  hotel  I  was  much  gratified  by  the  whimsical  appearance 
of  a  meeting  called  the  Society  of  Variety  and  Unity,  which  was 
held  there:  about  eighty  Dutchmen  of  the  middling  classes  of  life 
were  assembled  in  one  of  the  rooms,  to  discuss  philosophical,  but 
more  particularly  religious  questions :  when  I  entered  the  room, 
one  of  their  members  was  addressing  the  body  upon  the  subject 
of  death,  as  I  was  informed.  His  eloquence  appeared  to  be  as 
sluggish  as  the  canal  opposite;  the  motto  of  the  fraternity  was  well 
illustrated  by  what  appeared;  the  only  variety  I  saw  was  in  their 
pipes,  and  their  unity  was  effected  by  the  fumes  of  their  tobacco, 
which  seemed  to  blend  them  in  one  common  mass  of  smoke. 

I  had  not  been  two  days  in  Holland  without  witnessing  the 
abominable  custom  of  introducing  a  spitting  pot  upon  the  table 
after  dinner,  into  which,  like  the  Kava  bowl  used  amongst  the 
natives  of  the  South-sea  islands,  each  person  present  who  smokes, 
and  that  generally  comprehends  all  who  are  present,  discharges 
his  saliva,  which  delicate  depositary  is  handed  round  as  regularly 
as  the  bottle.  This  custom  is  comparable  in  point  of  delicacy  with 
that  of  washing  the  mouth  and  cleaning  the  teeth  with  a  napkin 
after  dinner,  as  in  England,  or  picking  the  latter  with  a  fork,  as  in 
France. 

The  Dutch  are  proverbial  for  smoking.  The  moment  I  entered 
any  coffee-house,  pipes  and  tobacco  were  introduced,  as  if  the 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  45 

waiters  were  in  dread  of  my  imbibing  some  pestilent  disease,  with- 
out this  sort  of  fumigation,  and  expressed  uncommon  surprise, 
when  they  remarked  that  I  declined  using  them.  The  Dutch  will 
insist  upon  it  that  smoking  is  not  only  as  necessary  to  preserve 
their  constitutions,  as  paint  is  to  protect  the  exterior  of  their  houses 
from  the  effects  of  their  moist  climate,  but  that  the  vapour  invi- 
gorates the  mind,  which  mounted  like  an  aerial  spirit  upon  a 
cloud,  pours  forth  treasures  of  reflection  with  a  brilliancy  little 
short  of  inspiration. 

The  Dutch  go  to  an  astonishing  expense  in  their  pipes,  which 
assume  an  endless  variety  of  shapes,  and  are  decorated  sometimes 
with  the  most  coxcombical  figures  painted  upon  the  head  or  cup 
of  it,  according  to  the  taste  of  its  possessor. 

Many  of  the  opulent  Hollanders  use  a  pipe,  the  head  of  which 
is  made  of  a  clay  which  is  very  rare,  and  found  only  in  Turkey, 
of  so  beautiful  a  colour,  that  is  called  the  Meerschaum,  or  froth  of 
the  sea;  for  this  piece  of  luxury  the  value  of  eight  and  even  ten 
guineas  is  frequently  paid. 

The  lower  orders  of  society,  and  many  of  the  higher,  carry  in 
their  pockets  their  pipe,  a  pricker  to  clear  the  tube,  a  piece  of  tinder 
made  in  Germany  from  the  large  mushrooms  growing  on  old  trees, 
resembling  spunge,  a  small  steel  and  flint  to  kindle  the  fire  with, 
and  a  box  frequently  capacious  enough  to  contain  a  pound  of  to- 
bacco. 

It  is  curious  to  observe  how  naturally  a  pipe  depends  from  a 
Dutchman's  mouth,  and  with  what  perfect  facility  he  smokes  with- 
out the  assistance  of  either  hand:  he  literally  appears  to  have  been 
formed  by  nature  to  breathe  through  this  tube,  with  which  he  rides 
on  horseback,  drives  in  a  carriage,  and  even  dances.  I  have  seen 
little  boys  take  this  instrument  and  puff  away  with  an  apparently- 
instinctive  predilection  for  the  transatlantic  weed.  Smoking  is  a 
Dutchman's  panacea,  he  thinks  it  good  in  all  cases,  whether  of 
consumptions,  or  plethora,  nervous  debility,  or  fiery  fever:  as  a 
masticatory,  tobacco  is  but  little  used  even  by  the  fishermen,  sailors 
and  boors;  and  I  was  surprised  to  find,  that  in  the  social  shape  of 
snuff,  it  seemed  to  have  not  many  admirers. 


46  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

Tobacco  had  many  enemies  to  contend  with.  In  1610,  the 
smoking  of  tobacco  was  known  at  Constantinople,  but  it  was 
thought  so  injurious  a  custom,  that  to  remove  it  by  ridicule,  a 
Turk  who  had  been  found  smoking,  was  conducted  about  the 
streets  with  a  pipe  transfixed  through  his  nose:  it  was  along  time 
before  the  Dutch  cultivated  the  plant  themselves;  previous  to  that 
period  they  purchased  it,  and  that  the  very  refuse  of  the  English. 
In  1615,  tobacco  began  to  be  sown  about  Amsfort  in  Holland. 

By  James  I.  the  practice  of  smoking  was  severely  and  most 
whimsically  denounced  in  a  work,  called  u  King  James  the  Sixth's 
(of  Scotland)  Counterblast  to  Tobacco"  in  which  the  royal  pedant 
states,  "  that  some  gentlemen  of  his  courts  were  accustomed  to 
expend  no  less  than  three  or  four  hundred  pounds  a  year  upon 
this  indulgence."  He  also  says,  "  that  it  was  used  as  a  powerful 
aphrodisiac."  He  particularly  deplores  the  case  of  delicate,  whole- 
some, clean  complexioned  wives,  whose  husbands  were  not  asham- 
ed to  pollute  them  with  the  fierpetual  stinking  torment  of  tobacco 
smoke:  the  concluding  sentence  of  this  extraordinary  composition 
is  somewhat  laughable.  "  The  use  of  tobacco,"  he  says,  "  is  a 
custom  loathsome  to  the  eye,  hateful  to  the  nose,  harmful  to  the 
brain,  dangerous  to  the  lungs,  and  in  the  black  stinking  fume 
thereof,  nearest  resembling  the  horrid  Stygian  smoke  of  the  pit 
that  is  botTomless." 

Few  would  wish  to  withhold  from  a  Dutchman  the  narcotic 
enjoyment  of  his  pipe,  when  they  reflect,  that  he  seeks  no  other 
species  cf  oblivion  to  his  care;  for,  I  believe,  notwithstanding  a 
Dutchman's  eulogium  upon  his  pipe,  that  it  produces  more  obli- 
vion than  inspiration :  he  is  scarcely  ever  seen  intoxicated:  indeed, 
drunkenness  is  held  unpardonably  infamous  in  Holland.  To  keep 
bad  accounts,  and  to  be  seen  inebriated,  are  equally  disgraceful; 
and  hence  the  use  of  wines  and  spirituous  liquors  is  much  less  in 
Holland  than  in  England. 

The  Dutch  agree  with  Cassio's  reasoning: 

"  Oh!  that  men  should  put  an  enemy  into  their  mouths,  to  steal 

away  their  brains!  That  we  should  with  joy,  revel,  pleasure,  and  applause, 

transform  ourselves  into  beasts'!" 

Othello,  Act  HI.  Scene  t 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  47' 

The  spill-houses  are  not  the  only  objectionable  instances  of  the 
abuse  of  the  government;  the  police  master  is  suffered  to  misuse- 
his  authority  to  a  shameful  excess.  Instead  of  bringing  delinquents 
to  justice,  he  is  in  the  frequent  habit  of  privately  compromising 
public  offence,  and  putting  the  sum  paid  into  his-own  pocket.  Some 
time  before  I  was  in  Rotterdam,  a  burgher  who  had  been  guilty  of 
adultery,  paid  twenty  thousand  guilders  to  this  minister  of  justice, 
who  thus  partaking  of  the  commercial  spirit  of  his  country,  be- 
comes a  merchant  in  delinquency. 

I  saw  in  several  shops  a  great  number  of  articles  of  English 
manufacture  exposed  to  sale,  particularly  Manchester  goods.  The 
Dutch  manufacture  their  own  woollens,  and  they  are  esteemed  to 
be  very  good.  The  black  cloth  of  Holland  is  very  well  known,  which 
is  infinitely  of  a  deeper  and  superior  colour  than  ours.  The  princi- 
pal cloth  manufactures  are  at  Leyden  and  Tielburg.  There  are 
also  very  capital  and  flourishing  manufactures  of  velvets,  silk,  and 
carpets,  at  Hilversom;  and  those  of  linen  and  table-cloths,  which 
are  exquisite,  at  Overyssel;  and  numerous  paper-mills. 

The  population  of  Rotterdam  is  estimated  at  sixty  thousand 
inhabitants.  Upon  the  whole,  it  is  a  gloomy  place  to  live  in;  a 
constant  iteration  of  the  same  canals,  bridges,  boats,  houses,  and 
figures,  will  soon  damp  the  spirits  of  a  traveller,  unless  naturally 
very  vivacious.  There  is  no  theatre,  no  place  of  public  amusement, 
but  the  spill-houses  I  have  described,  which  are  as  much,  at  least 
to  feeling  minds,  not  accustomed  to  them,  entitled  to  that  appella- 
tion, as  any  of  our  houses  of  correction. 

Here  I  bade  adieu  to  my  companions  and  friends,  who  pro- 
ceeded direct  to  Germany,  where  I  promised  to  rejoin  them.  I 
was  by  no  means  sorry  to  follow  a  lacquey  to  that  quarter  of  the 
suburbs  where  the  Delft  boats  set  off  every  two  hours,  with  my 
portmanteau,  and  to  bid  adieu  to  Rotterdam.  Our  treckschuyt  lay- 
ready  for  starting ;  at  two  o'clock,  a  little  bell  fastened  on  the  out- 
side of  a  house  where  the  director  resides,  announced  that  all 
was  ready ;  the  horse  was  fastened  to  a  very  long,  and  rather  a  thin, 
line,  and  we  slipped  through  the  liquid  road,  sensible  of  moving 
only  from  passing  the  objects  that  lined  the.  sides,  of  the  cana^ 


48  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

consisting  for  a  considerable  way  of  pretty  houses  and  avenues  of 
trees. 

The  treckschuyt  is  along  barge  divided  into  two  apartments; 
the  after  one,  called  the  ruif  or  roof,  possesses  superior  accommo- 
dations, and  will  hold  from  eight  to  a  dozen  persons,  and  the  other 
from  forty  to  fifty :  this  vessel,  which  is  drawn  by  a  single  horse, 
moves  so  precisely  at  the  rate  of  four  miles  an  hour,  that  the 
Dutch  always  compute  by  the  hour  instead  of  the  mile.*  In  the 
cabin  or  roof,  there  are  four  oblique  windows,  which  move  up  and 
down,  a  table  in  the  middle,  with  a  long  drawer  filled  with  pipes. 
The  seats  are  covered  with  handsome  cushions ;  but  the  prime 
accommodations  are  a  spitting-box,  and  a  little  iron  pot  filled  with 
burning  turf,  to  furnish  the  smokers  with  fire  for  their  pipes.  The 
price  is  about  three  pence  an  hour:  this  part  is  generally  occupied 
by  persons  of  a  superior  condition.  So  steady  is  the  motion  of  the 
vessel,  that  the  passenger  may  read,  write,  or  draw  in  it,  without 
interruption. 

The  treckschuyts  preserve  an  easy  intercourse  between  the 
most  distant  parts  of  the  kingdom,  and  the  cheapness  of  their  con- 
veyance places  them  within  the  reach  of  the  most  slender  purse. 
Every  thing  relative  to  these  vessels  is  conducted  with  such  ad- 
mirable punctuality,  that  the  passenger  can  tell  to  the  smallest 
cost  in  the  kingdom  what  his  expenses  will  amount  to,  and  to  a 
minute  when  he  shall  arrive  at  the  end  of  his  journey,  in  which, 
if  it  be  long,  he  carries  his  provision  with  him,  or  purchases  a  fru- 
gal meal  at  the  house  where  the  boat  stops  a  few  minutes  for  that 
purpose.  At  those  places  where  the  treckschuyts  stop  on  account 
of  the  course  of  the  canal  being  interrupted,  and  where  passengers 
are  in  consequence  obliged  to  quit  one  vessel  to  go  to  another, 
there  are  females  who  offer  refreshments  for  sale,  consisting  of 
little  rolls  and  small  birds,  and  slices  of  cold  baked  eels,  fastened 
to  a  small  stick. 

*  The  Dutch  boors  are  also  so  regular  in  smoking  their  pipes,  that  hi 
calculating  the  distances  of  places,  they  say  they  are  so  many  pipes 
asunder. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  49 

The  Ireckschuyts  are  all  under  the  direction  of  government, 
and  are  truly  punctual,  convenient,  cheap,  and  agreeable.  The 
town  of  Delft  was  about  twelve  miles,  or  three  hours  distant.  On 
the  sides  of  the  canal,  the  surface  of  the  water  was  frequently  co- 
vered by  the  nymphxa  alba,  a  magnificent  white  water-lily,  whose 
expanded  and  unsullied  flowers  had  a  charming  effect,  particularly 
when  intermixed  with  menyanthes  nymjihoidex,  the  yellow  fringed 
water-lily,  which  are  very  uncommon  in  England. 

We  passed  by  several  sawing  or  wood  mills,  which  are  moved 
by  wind:  the  machinery  of  those  buildings,  which  I  afterwards  exa- 
mined, is  very  curious;  they  were  originally  invented  by  Corneille 
Van  Uitgust.  The  flies  of  the  mill  are  fixed  to  a  large  beam, 
which  turns  on  an  axis;  in  the  centre  of  the  beam  the  principal 
wheel  is  fixed,  which  impels  one  immediately  below  it,  which  is 
also  fixed  on  the  middle  of  a  piece  of  timber,  hanging  on  an  axis, 
to  which  four  perpendicular  saws,  ten  in  each  compartment,  are? 
fastened,  which,  as  the  wheel  revolves,  are  elevated  and  depressed. 
Two  iron  hooks  are  fastened  at  the  end  of  this  beam,  which  catch 
a  wheel,  and  as  the  saw  rises  and  falls,  move  this  wheel  one  cog; 
that  wheel  impels  another,  which  catches  into  a  piece  of  iron,  and 
draws  it  towards  itself;  at  the  end  of  this  iron  there  is  a  cross  bar, 
which  presses  against  the  end  of  the  tree,  while  the  other  end  is 
sawing,  and  gradually  forces  it  on  to  the  teeth  of  the  saws,  as  they 
proceed  in  cutting. 

I  remember  at  Memel,  in  Polish  Prussia,  the  sawing  mills 
there  had  another  mechanical  power,  that  of  drawing  up  the  trees 
from  the  barks  in  which  they  were  brought  in  the  river,  into  the 
yard  or  store-house.  I  believe  mills  for  sawing  timber  have  been 
introduced  only  partially  into  England.  All  the  mills  in  Holland 
rise  to  a  very  great  height,  to  secure  as  much  wind  at  all  times  as 
possible.  Many  of  these  mills  were  thatched  on  the  sides  as  well 
as  the  roof. 

A  very  ingenious  discovery,  infinitely  more  curious  than  the 
Dutch  sawing-mill,  has,  however,  been  recently  made  in  London, 
by  Sir  George  Wright,  Bart,  of  machinery  for  sawing  stone,  for 
which  a  patent  has  been  obtained,  now  the  property  of  Samuel 

e 


50  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND^ 

Hill,  Esq.  who  has  added  many  improvements  to  it.  By  means  of 
a  steam-engine,  a  number  of  saws  are  set  in  motion,  by  which  a 
solid  block  of  marble  or  stone,  rough  from  the  quarry,  can  be  cut 
into  shafts  of  columns  of  diminishing  diameters,  one  within  the 
other,  at  the  same  time:  the  blocks  fixed  in  an  iron  circular  frame, 
resting  upon  four  small  wheels,  by  which  they  can  be  turned  round 
by  the  person  who  has  the  care  of  a  certain  number  of  them,  to 
keep  the  saws,  which  are  almost  in  a  horizontal  position,  con- 
stantly acting  upon  them ;  the  blocks  are  a  little  inclined,  to  enable , 
the  saws  to  be  supplied  with  water  from  a  trough  above,  conduc- 
ted by  means  of  tin  pipes  to  the  respective  orificbs. 

By  means  of  this  admirable  invention,  a  saving  of  three-fourths 
of  the  stone  is  produced  upon  a  block  of  large  diameter;  the  outer 
cases  being  as  strong  as  the  cube,  Jive  men  can  perform  the  work 
which  occupied ,/brty  before  the  discovery ;  and  stone  columns  are 
reduced  to  the  price  of  wooden  ones.  These  saws  can  also  cut  out 
an  entire  gothic  window,  which  they  effect  at  a  saving  of  eighty  pep 
cent,  with  great  beauty  and  precision,  and  which  in  its  former 
construction  was  divided  into  six  different  parts;  the  last  savings 
or  cubes,  upon  being  cemented  together,  constitute  a  complete  go- 
thic column,  and  the  concavity  of  the  divided  outer  case  of  a  large 
column  forms  an  entire  recess;  a  block  will  also,  after  it  has  af- 
forded several  shafts  of  columns,  form  a  handsome  series  of  chim- 
nies.  The  pipes  for  conveying  water  by  this  machinery  are  much 
preferred,  on  account  of  their  durability  :  the  proprietors  of  seve- 
ral public  works  have  adopted  them  in  preference  to  those  of  wood, 
which  are  continually  wanting  repairs.  This  highly  ingenious 
discovery  has  been  matured  and  prosecuted  with  great  public  spi- 
lit  and  expense  by  the  proprietor,  and  promises,  from  its  great 
utility  and  economy,  to  become  an  object  of  high  national  impor- 
tance. 

In  our  treckschuyt,  I  witnessed  a  strong  contrast  to  the  spirits 
and  loquacity  of  the  French  and  Germans;  all  was  smoke  and 
silence,  save  when  it  yielded  to  a  few  short  sentences,  in  which 
the  word  mi  vroiv  frequently  met  my  ear.  One  very  grave  elderly 
gentleman,  who  wore  an  enormous  curled  and  powdered  wig,  and 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  51 

who  somewhat  resembled  Lord  Burleigh  in  the  Critic,  spoke  but 
once  all  the  way,  and  that  was  in  the  following  oracular  sentence; 
"  Wat  is  goed  voor  de  man  is  ook  goed  voor  de  vroiv-^ What  is 
good  for  the  husband,  is  as  good  for  the  wife;"  so  similar  in  many 
instances  are  the  Dutch  and  English  languages,  that  some  of  our 
witlings  have  observed  that  bad  English  will  make  very  good 
Dutch.  M.  Siegenbeek,  minister  of  the  anabaptist  church  at  Ley- 
den,  and  the  first  who  has  occupied  the  chair  for  Dutch  literature 
and  eloquence  in  the  university  of  that  city,  in  which,  by  his  ge- 
nius and  attainments,  he  reflects  honour  upon  his  country,  has  pub- 
lished a  very  ingenious  work,  entitled,  Verhandeling  over  de  JVeder- 
duitsche  Sfielling;  a  Treatise  on  Dutch  Orthography,  tending  to 
render  it  uniform:  this  work  and  another  by  the  same  author, 
called  Verhandeling  over  den  Ionsted,  Isfc.  or  a  Treatise  on  the  In- 
fluence of  Euphony  or  agreeable  Sound,  and  of  the  Facility  of 
Pronunciation,  on  the  orthography  of  the  Dutch  language,  were, 
at  the  instigation  and  by  the  able  exertions  of  M.  Vander  Palm, 
the  agent  of  national  education,  some  years  since  published,  for 
the  improvement  of  the  national  language  and  poetry.  The  late 
Batavian  government  adopted  the  system  of  orthography  proposed 
by  M.  Siegenbeek,  and  ordered  it  to  be  used  by  all  the  offices  of 
administration. 

It  is  generally  understood  that  the  language  of  Holland  is  di- 
vided into  High  and  Low  Dutch,  whereas  there  is  but  one  pure 
language,  as  in  England,  which  is  called  Neder  Duitch,  the  lan- 
guage of  the  Netherlands,  or  of  a  country  lying  very  low.  In 
Holland,  as  in  every  other  country,  there  is  a  variety  of  provincial 
idioms  ;  for  instance,  a  raw  native  of  Friezeland  would  not  be  un- 
derstood at  Amsterdam. 

Of  the  Dutch  language  our  immortal  lexicographer,  Johnson, 
says,  "  Our  knowledge  of  the  northern  literature  is  so  scanty,  that 
of  words  undoubtedly  Teutonic  the  original  is  not  always  to  be 
found  in  any  ancient  language,  and  I  have  therefore  inserted  Dutch 
or  German  substitutes,  which  I  consider  not  as  radical,  but  paral- 
lel ;  not  as  the  parent  of,  but  as  sisters  to  the  English."    To  close* 


52  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

this  digression,  the  language,  I  must  confess,  did  not  sound  disso- 
nant to  my  ear  from  the  lips  of  well-bred  persons. 

The  following  specimens  will  enable  the  reader  to  obserye  the 
solidity  of  the  learned  doctor's  remark. 

Was  you  at  Lord  Nelson's  funeral  ?  Yes, 
Waart  gy  by  Lord  Nelson's  begravenis  ?   J  a. 
Waren  sie  bey  Lord  Nelson's  begraebniss?  Ja. 

Be  then  so  good  as  to  describe  it  to  me. 

"Weest!  dan  zoo  goed  en  beschryft  het  my. 

Sefn  s.ie  dann  so  gut,  und  beschreiben  sie  es  mil*. 

The  procession  was  abruptly  broken  into  three  parts, 
De  processie  was  volmaakt  afgebroken  in  drie  deelen, 
Die  procession  war  ploetzlich  abgebrochen  in  drey  theile, 

or  rather  there  were  three  distinct  and  unconnected  processions. 

of  eerder  er  waare  drie  veschillende  &  afgezonderde  processien. 

oder  vielmehr,  es  waren  drey  verschiedene  &  abgesonderte  processioned 

First  came  trumpeters  playing  the  dead  march  in  Saul, 
Eerstkwamen  de  trompetters  de  dood  marsch  in  Saul  blaasende, 
Zuerst  kamen  die  trompeter,  die  den  Toden  marsch  in  Saul  bliessen,. 

followed  by  a  large  body  of  cavalry  and  foot  soldiers, 

gevolgd  door  een  groot  corps  ruitery  en  infantery, 

auf  welche  ein  grosses  corps  cavallerie  und  infanterie  folgte, 

having  the  appearance  of  going  to  a  review. 

het  voorkomen  hebbende  als  of  zy  naar  een  revue  ginge. 

welches  anssahe,  als  wenn  sie  nach  einer  revue  giengen 

"VVhen  they  had  passed,  and  patience  was  nearly  exhausted, 
Toen  zy  voorby  waaren,  &  het  geduld  byna  ten  einde  was, 
Als  sie  vorbei  waren,  und  die  gedult  beinahe  erschoepft  war, 

and  a  million  or  more  of  teeth  had  chattered  with  the  cold, 
en  een  millioen  van  tande  ge  klappert  hadden  van  de  koude, 
und  millionen  zaehne  geklappert  hatten  vor  kaelte, 

more  melancholy  trumpeters  appeared,  blowing  dirges, 
verscheenen  nogmeerder  droevige  trompetters  treur  liederren  blaazende, 
erschienen  andere  melancholische  trompeter,  die  trauerlieder  bliessen, 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  53 

then  followed  a  line  of  mourning  coaches,  one  filled  with 
daarna  volgde  een  rey  rouvv  koet  zen  van  de  vvelke  eene 
alsdann  folgte  eine  reihe  trauerwagen,  der  eine  gefiilt  mit 

little  flags,  as  returning  from  a  Dutch  fair; 

met  kleine  vlaggen  gevuld  was,  als  komende  van  een  Hollandsche  kermis; 
kleinen  flaggen,  als'kaeme  er  von  einer  Hollaendischen  kirmis  zuriick; 

another  with  a  knight's  shirt,  spurs,  and  gloves, 

een  ander  met  een  ridders  hembd,  spooren  &  handschoenen, 

ein  anderer  mit  eines  ritters  hemd,  spornen  und  handschuen, 

which  dangled  in  the  air  from  little  white  wands, 

al  het  welke  in  delugt  wapperde,  hangende  aan  witte  stockjes, 

welche  flatterten  in  der  luft,  an  kleinen  weisen  stecken  hangend, 

then  succeeded  a  group  of  noble  fellows, 
dan  volgde  een  hoop  braave  knaape  uitmaakende, 
dann  folgte  ein  haufen  braver  kerls, 

part  of  the  crew  of  Nelson's  ship ; 
gedeelte  van  het  volk  van  Nelson's  schip, 
ein  theil  der  mannschafft  von  Nelson's  schiff, 

their  faces  were  embrowned  by  the  hard  duties  of  war ; 

hun  aangezichte  waare  bruin  door  de  harde  oorlogs  pligte ; 

ihre  gesichter  waren  braun  geworden  durch  die  harten  kriegs  dienstei 

their  hearts  seemed  touched  with  genuine  sorrow ; 
hunne  herte  scheenen  aangedaan  door  op  rechte  droef  heid; 
ihrehertzen  schienen  geriihrt  mit  aufrichtigem  schmerze; 

very  few  could  look  upon  them  with  dry  eyes, 
zeer  weinige  konde  hun  met  drooge  oogen  aanzien. 
Sehr  wenige  konnten  auf  sie  sehen  mit  trocknen  augen. 

In  the  simple  garb  of  sailors,  with  downcast  looks, 

In  de  eenvoudige  matroozen  kleeding  met  neergeslagen  oogen, 

In  der  einfachen  matrosenkleidung,  mit  niedergeschlagenen  blicken, 

they  engaged  more  attention  than  all  the  military  pomp 

trokken  zy  meerder  aandacht  op  zig  als  al  de  militaire 

zogen  sie  jnehr  aufmerksamkeit  auf  sich,  als  alle  militaire  pracht 


54  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

which  had  preceded  them  ; 

die  hun  voorafgegaan  was: 
die  ihnen  vorangegangen  war: 

I  saw  one  of  them  raise  his  rough  hand  to  his  eye      # 

Ik  zag,  een  van  hun,  zyn  ruwe  hand  tot  zyn  oog  brengen 

Ich  sahe  einen  von  ihnen  seine  rauhe  hand  nach  seinem  auge  bringen 

and  wipe  away  a  tear — perchance  the  first  he  ever  shed. 

en  een  traau  afwissen  de  eerste  dien  hy  mischien  in  zyn  leeven  gestort  had. 

und  eine  thraene  abvvischen,  vielleicht  die  erste,  welche  er  jemals  vergoss. 

All  thought  the  hero's  body  would  immediately  follow, 
een  yder  dagt  dat  nn  het  lichaam  van  den  held  volgen. 
jederman  glaubte,  des  helden  leichnam  werde  unmittelbar  folgen. 

An  hour  had  elapsed,  during  which  the  volunteers 
Een  uur  ging  voorby,  geduurende  het  welke  de  vrywillige 
Eine  stunde  gieng  voriiber,  wxhrend  welcher  die  freiwilligen 

broke  from  their  ranks  to  get  refreshments-, 
tiithunne  geleederren  liepen  om  zig  te  verfrischen, 
aus  ihren  reihen  liefen,  um  sich  zu  erfrischen, 

and  all  was  chaos  and  confusion — These  brave  men, 
en  alles  was  een  Caos  van  verwarring — Deeze  braave  mannen 
und  alles  war  chaos  und  vervviming — Diese  braven  maenner. 

although  they  have  been  slandered  by  one  high  in  the  state, 
al  hoewel  zy  door  een  groot  man  in  de  staat  geheekelt  waaren, 
Obschon  sie  von  einem  hohen  staats  manne  sind  verhoehnet  wordeF.. 

will,  when  the  hour  arrives,  discharge  their  duty, 
zullen  wanneer  de  tyd  koomt  hunne  pligt  voldoen. 
werden,  wann  die  stunde  kommt,  ihre  pflicht  thun. 

At  last,  when  every  eye  had  been  strained  with  expectation, 
Eindelyk,  toen  yder  oog  vermoeid  was  door  verwagting, 
Endlich,  als  jederman's  auge  gespannt  war  mit  erwartung, 

the  dark  plumed  car  appeared,  bearing  the  remains 
verscheen  de  zwarte  gepluimde,  karmet  de  overblyfsels 
erschien  der  schwarze,  gefederte  wagen,  tragend  die  uberbleibsel 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND,.  5£ 

Of  the  mighty  chief,  whose  fame  will  live  as  long 

van  de  magtige  bevelhebber,  wiens  roem  zoo  lang  zal  bestaan 

des  maechtigen  befehlshabers,  dessen  ruhm  bestehen  wird  so  lang* 

as  the  ocean  which  supported  him 
als  de  oceaan  die  hem  in  zyn  triumph 
als  der  ocean,  der  ihn  trug 

in  his  triumph,  shall  roll  his  waves. 

droeg  zyne  baaren  rollen  zal. 

in  seinem  triumph,  wird  seine  wellen  wselzen. 

No  solumn  music  announced  its  approach, 
Geen  solemneel  muziek  verkondigde  zyn  naaderingv 
keine  feierliche  musik  verkiindigte  seine  ankunft, 

or  closed  its  melancholy  movement. 

of  sloot  zyn  droevige  beweeging. 

oder  beendigte  seine  melancholische  bewegung. 

A  line  of  mourning  coaches  succeeded, 
Een  rey  van  gemeene  rouw  koetzen  volgde, 
Eine  reihe  von  gemeinen  trauerwagen  folgte, 

at  unequal  distances, 
in  ongelyke  aftsanden. 
in  ungleicher  entfernung. 

Many  of  them,  having  been  left  behind, 

Verscheide  zyndeagter  af  gebleeven, 

Viele  von  ihnen,  die  zurlick  geblieben  waren, 

drove  furiously  along  the  streets, 
reede  met  drift  door  de  straaten, 
fuhren  wiithend  durch  die  strassen, 

and  so  closed  this  public  spectacle, 

en  zoo  sloot  dit  algemeen  spectakel, 

und  so  endigte  sich  dieses  cefifentliche  schauspiel, 

upon  which  enormous  sums  were  lavished  to  show 

voor  het  welke  groote  somme  weggeworpe  vvaaren  omde, 

auf  welches  grosse  summen  sind  verschwendet  vvorden,  zu  zeigen*. 

the  nation's  love  of  valour,  and  its  want  of  taste. 

natsie  haar  liefde  voor  mocd,  &  gebrek  aan  smaak  te  tonen. 

der  nation's  Hebe  ftir  tapferkcit,  &  ihren  mangel  an  geschmack.  . 


56       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND, 


CHAPTER  VI. 


DEXTERITY  OF  BOATMEN... .OVERCHIE.... DUTCH  GINGERBREAD.... 

A    FRENCH    SAYING DELFT    CHINA. ...DELFT DUTCHMAN'S 

REMARK  ON  THE  WAR NEW   CHURCH.. ..ANECDOTE  OF  GRO- 

TIUS AFFECTIONATE    STRATAGEM GROTIUs's    REMARKS 

ON   EDUCATION BARNEVELT NOBLE    FEMALE     ANECDOTE 

THE    CARILLONS CARILLONEURS DUTCH     FRUGALITY 

TOWARDS    THE     DEAD REVOLUTIONARY     MODERATION 

FIRMNESS    OF    MANUFACTURERS. 

MY  companions  continued  smoking,  and  enjoying  the  delight- 
ful novelty  of  our  aquatic  conveyance  and  the  surrounding  scene- 
ry. We  met  several  boats,  and  the  dexterity  by  which  the  line  was 
slackened  by  one  boat,  to  permit  the  other,  which  kept  its  towing 
mast  standing,  to  pass  over  the  cord,  according  to  the  custom 
which  governs  this  sort  of  rencontre  on  the  canal,  was  admirable, 
as  also  was  the  ease  and  skill  with  which  the  skipper  who  has  the 
care  of  the  line  throws  it  up  on  one  side,  and  catches  it  on  the 
other  of  a  bridge  under  which  the  boat  is  obliged  to  pass. 

At  Overchie,  a  village  about  three  miles,  or  one  hour  from  Rot- 
terdam, the  houses  are  close  to  the  water,  and  little  children  were 
playing  on  its  very  margin  without  exciting  any  apprehension.  In 
this  town  the  prospect  of  a  late  dinner  induced  me  to  taste  its  gin- 
gerbread, for  which  Holland  is  very  justly  celebrated.  Before  every 
cottage,  brass  kettles  and  pans  just  cleaned  were  placed  upon  stools 
in  the  open  air,  or  were  polishing  under  the  hands  of  their  inde- 
fatigable owners;  and  even  certain  utensils  shone  with  such  re- 
splendent brightness  in  the  sun,  that  the  well-known  saying  which 
the  French  whimsically  apply  to  the  grave  and  thoughtful,  II  est 
serieux  comme  un  pot  de  chambre,  would  lose  the  fidelity  of  its 
Vesemblance  here. 


TQUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  57 

We  were  passed  by  several  curricles,  a  very  common  carriage 
til  this  part  of  Holland,  the  horses  in  rope  harness,  going  to  and 
from  Rotterdam.  In  the  roof  of  the  boat  were  some  ladies  and  gen- 
tlemen, who,  as  well  as  I  could  discern  through  the  smoke,  seemed 
pleased  to  see  me  so  with  their  country.  The  land  all  the  way  on 
each  side  was  rich  pasture.  On  our  left,  a  short  distance  from 
Delft,  we  passed  a  cannon  foundry,  and  on  our  right  some  potte- 
ries, where  the  Delft  china,  formerly  much  prized  all  over  Europe, 
and  which  Vandevelt  and  other  eminent  artists  embellished  with 
their  pencils,  used  to  be  manufactured  in  great  abundance.  These 
potteries,  since  last  war,  have  greatly  declined,  to  the  severe  in^ 
jury  of  the  adjoining  town. 

The  principal  cause  of  the  decay  of  these  potteries  has  been 
the  vast  quantities  of  porcelain  which,  for  more  than  a  century 
and  a  half,  have  been  imported  from  China  into  Europe,  and  the 
great  improvement  of  that  beautiful  manufacture  in  England  and 
Germany.  Some  years  since  the  earth-ware  of  Staffordshire  was  so 
much  admired  in  Holland,  that  to  protect  the  manufacture  of  Delft 
from  utter  ruin,  the  States  General  imposed  a  duty  upon  its  im- 
portation into  the  republic,  that  nearly  amounted  to  a  prohibition. 
Hence  the  name  of  an  Englishman  is  not  very  popular  in  Delft. 
I  tasted  some  excellent  beer  in  this  town,  which  is  celebrated  for 
its  breweries,  and  produces  an  admirable  imitation  of  London  bot- 
tled porter. 

The  town  is  very  ancient  and  picturesque;  at  the  place  where 
we  disembarked,  were  several  treckschuyts  moored  under  an  old 
castellated  gateway,  from  which,  preceded  by  a  commissary  or  li- 
censed porter,  who  attends  the  moment  the  boat  arrives,  with  his 
wheelbarrow,  to  convey  the  luggage  of  the  passengers,  we  entered 
Delft,  the  capital  of  Delftland,  in  the  province  of  Holland,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  a  very  comfortable  inn,  which  furnished  some  good  cut- 
lets, and  a  bottle  of  claret.  Before  the  hotel  all  was  bustle,  from  the 
number  of  carriages  filled  with  genteel  people  proceeding  to,  and 
returning  from  the  Hague,  to  and  from  which  boats  are  passing 
every  half  hour. 

H 


58  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

Here,  as  in  every  inn  in  Holland,  however  humble,  the  guest  has 
always  the  comfort  of  a  silver  fork  placed  by  his  side,  and  a  table- 
cloth of  snowy  whiteness :  in  the  room  where  I  dined  was  a  glass 
china  cupboard,  and  every  article  within  it  bore  shining  testimony 
to  its  having  received  a  due  proportion  of  diurnal  care.  Delft  is  a 
large  but  gloomy  town,  and  as  silent  as  a  monastery,  except  in 
the  street  immediately  leading  to  the  Hague;  upon  quitting  which, 
no  sound  was  to  be  heard  but  that  of  mops  and  buckets :  narrow, 
green,  stagnant  canals  divide  most  of  the  streets,  which  are  generally, 
for  some  little  distance  before  the  houses,  paved  with  black  and  white 
marble,  However,  the  principal  part  of  the  town  is  handsome,  hav- 
ing two  spacious  streets,  with  broad  canals  bordered  with  trees. 

The  navigation  is  interrupted  from  the  Rotterdam  entrance  to 
that  of  the  Hague,  so  that  the  water  within  it,  presents  no  animat- 
ing object.  In  this  town  turf  is  principally  burnt. 

Although  the  taciturnity  of  the  place  would  induce  a  stranger 
to  think  its  population  small,  it  reckons  13,000  inhabitants,  6000 
of  whom,  since  the  war,  have  been  reduced  to  the  class  of  paupers. 
I  met  with  two  or  three  inhabitants  who  spoke  good  English,  and 
expressed  in  terms  of  feeling  misery,  the  heavy  losses  and  distresses 
which  they  had  sustained  by  a  rupture  with  England;  yet,  strange 
as  it  may  appear,  they  seemed  to  think  well  of  their  new  govern- 
ment, and  spoke  with  great  esteem  of  their  king,  of  whom  they 
said  they  well  knew,  he  felt  the  impolicy  of  a  war  with  England 
as  much  as  any  Dutchman,  and  that  he  would  rejoice  at  the  hour, 
when  the  great  political  events  which  were  passing  in  other  parts 
of  the  world,  would  admit  of  a  renewal  of  amity  and  free  inter- 
course with  that  country;  they  spoke  of  the  government  of  the 
Stadtholder  with  contempt,  and  of  the  Republic  with  detestation. 

I  visited  the  new  church,  the  tower  of  which  is  very  fine, 
and  of  a  prodigious  altitude.  The  first  object  that  excited  my 
curiosity,  was  the  tomb  of  the  immortal  Grotius,  whose  remains 
were  brought  here,  after  he  expired  at  Rostock,  in  1645,  upon  his 
return  from  the  court  of  Christina,  Queen  of  Sweden,  to  this,  his 
native  city.  The  tomb  erected  tQ  his  memory  is  simple,  but  hand- 
some ;  it  consists  of  a  medallion  representing  the  head  of  this  great 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  53 

man,  and  a  child  leaning  upon  an  urn  with  a  torch  inverted.  The 
epitaph  in  latin  is  elegant,  and  expressive  of  the  merits  and  virtues 
it  perpetuates.  I  regret,  upon  opening  my  memorandums,  to  find 
my  pencil  copy  of  it  so  effaced  as  to  be  unintelligible :  of  this  great 
civilian  and  general  scholar,  Aubere  du  Marier,  who  knew  him 
very  intimately  said,  "  that  he  was  tall,  strong,  and  a  well  made 
man,  and  had  a  very  agreeable  countenance.  With  all  those  excel- 
lences of  body,  his  mind  was  still  more  excellent.  He  was  a  man. 
of  openness,  of  veracity,  and  of  honour,  and  so  perfectly  virtuous, 
that  throughout  his  whole  life,  he  made  a  point  of  avoiding  and 
of  deserting  men  of  bad  character,  but  of  seeking  the  acquaintance 
of  men  of  worth,  and  persons  distinguished  by  talents,  not  only  of 
his  own  country,  but  of  all  Europe,  with  whom  he  kept  up  an 
epistolary  correspondence. 

Grotius  displayed  great  precocity  of  talents.  At  the  age  of 
fifteen,  he  accompanied  the  Dutch  ambassador,  Barneveldt,  into 
France,  and  was  honoured  by  several  marks  of  esteem  by  Henry 
the  Fourth,  who  at  that  age  discovered  extraordinary  powers  in 
the  mind  of  Grotius,  but  could  not  help  expressing  his  surprise, 
that  the  States  should  send  a  youth  without  a  beard  as  an  assistant 
to  their  ambassador ;  upon  which  the  stripling  astonished  the  great 
Henry  by  this  brilliant  reply:  "  Had  my  country  conceived  that 
your  Majesty  measured  ability  by  the  length  of  the  beard,  they 
would  have  sent  in  my  room  a  he  goat  of  Norway." 

At  seventeen  he  pleaded  as  a  civilian  at  the  bar  in  his  own 
country,  and  was  not  twenty-four  when  appointed  attorney-general. 
He  escaped  from  the  castle  of  Louvestein,  where  he  was  condemn- 
ed to  be  imprisoned  for  life,  for  the  share  he  had  in  the  affairs 
which  proved  the  ruin  of  Barneveldt,  in  the  following  interesting 
manner:  his  wife,  Maria  Van  Reygersbergen,  who  was  most  ten- 
derly attached  to  him,  and  a  lady  of  great  learning  and  accomplish- 
ments, conciliated  the  esteem  of  the  wife  of  the  governor  of  the 
castle  so  far,  as  to  obtain  permission,  during  the  absence  of  the 
governor  one  day,  to  have  removed  from  her  husband's  apartment 
a  large  quantity  of  books,  which  he  had  borrowed  of  a  friend  at 
Gorcum :  by  the  address  and  excellent  management  of  a  servant 


HJO  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

maid,  Grotius  occupied  the  place  of  the  books  in  the  trunk ;  he 
was  safely  conveyed  from  the  castle,  not  without  imminent  peril 
of  being  drilled  through  the  body,  in  consequence  of  the  porters 
who  carried  him  down  stairs,  suspecting  that  the  trunk  held  a  more 
learned  treasure,  than  that  which  it  was  said  to  contain. 

Grotius  took  refuge  in  France,  which  he  quitted  in  consequence 
of  the  illiberal  conduct  of  the  Cardinal  de  Richlieu  towards  him,  and 
accepted  of  an  invitation  from  that  singular  princess  Christina,  queen 
of  Sweden,  who  was  greatly  attached  to  him,  and  made  him  her 
ambassador  at  Paris,  where  the  Cardinal  gave  him  much  trouble, 
in  consequence  of  his  not  yielding  precedence  to  him.  When 
Grotius  had  breathed  his  last,  his  countrymen  felt  contrition  for 
their  oppression,  and  struck  a  medal  in  honour  of  him,  on  whicl\ 
^he  is  styled,  "  The  Oracle  of  Delft,  the  Phoenix  of  his  Country." 

"  This  common  body, 


**  Like  to  a  vagabond  flag  upon  the  stream, 

"  Goes  to  and  back,  lackeying  the  varying  tide." 

Anth.  and  Cleop.  Act  I.  Sc.  4. 

The  lines  of  Horace  may  be  well  applied  to  this  great  man  ; 

Urit  enim  fulgore  suo,  qui  praergravat  artes 
Infra  se  positas  :  extinctus  amabitur  idem. 

I  shall  conclude  these  interesting  anecdotes  of  Grotius,  by 
giving  his  excellent  sentiments  on  the  education  of  boys,  as  he 
imparted  them  to  Isaac  Vossius,  which  in  my  humble  opinion 
ought  to  be  considered  as  a  treasure  to  every  parent;  "  Many  per- 
sons/' says  he,  '<  make  use  of  tutors  for  the  education  of  their 
children,  which  hardly  ever  succeeds  as  it  was  intended.  I  have 
never  approved  of  that  method  of  education,  for  I  know  that  young 
persons  learn  only  when  they  are  together,  and  that  their  application 
is  languid  where  there  is  no  emulation.  I  am  as  little  of  a  friend  to 
schools,  where  the  master  scarce  knows  the  names  of  his  scholars ; 
where  the  number  is  so  great  that  he  cannot  distribute  his  attention 
upon  each  of  them,  whose  composition  requires  a  particular  at- 
tention. For  these  reasons  I  wish  that  a  medium  of  the  two  me- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  61 

■ihods  were  taken,  that  a  master  took  only  ten  or  twelve  boys,  who 
should  live  in  the  same  house,  and  be  of  the  same  classes,  by  which 
means  the  master  himself  would  not  be  overloaded  with  cares." 
Grotius  also  recommends  the  student  to  begin  with  those  histories, 
which  are  nearest  to  his  own  time. 

The  fate  of  Barne veldt  is  related  with  great  spirit  by  Voltaire, 
who  says,  But  human  affairs  are  ever  checquered  with  good  and 
evil.  Mankind  are  so  apt  to  deviate  from  their  principles,  that 
this  republic  (Holland)  had  nearly  destroyed  the  liberty  for  which 
she  had  so  bravely  fought,  and  persecution  boiled  in  the  blood  of  a 
people,  whose  happiness  and  laws  were  founded  on  toleration. 
Two  calvanistical  doctors  did  what  so  many  doctors  have  done  in  so. 
many  other  places.  Gomar  and  Arminius  disputed  most  furiously 
at  Ley  den,  about  what  neither  of  them  understood.  This  produced 
dissensions  in  the  United  Provinces. 

The  dispute  was  in  many  respects  similar  to  those  of  the 
Thomists  and  Scotists,  or  of  the  Jansenists  and  Molinists,  con- 
cerning predestination,  grace,  liberty,  and  other  obscure  and  frivo- 
lous articles,  where  they  know  not  how  to  define  the  very  subject 
on  which  they  dispute.  The  leisure  they  enjoyed  during  the  truce, 
unluckily  gave  those  ignorant  people  an  opportunity  to  fill  their 
heads  with  theological  disputes,  till  at  length,  out  of  a  scholastic 
controversy,  there  arose  two  parties  in  the  state.  Maurice,  Prince 
of  Orange,  headed  the  Gomarists,  and  the  pensionary  Barneveldt 
supported  the  Arminians. 

Du  Maurier  says,  that  he  had  been  told  by  the  ambassador  his 
father,  that  Maurice  having  proposed  to  the  pensionary  Barneveldt, 
to  concur  in  giving  him  the  supreme  power,  this  zealous  repub- 
lican showed  him  the  clanger  and  injustice  of  the  proposal,  and 
from  that  time  Barneveldt' 's  ruin  was  resolved  upon.  This  however 
is  certain,  that  the  Stadtholder  endeavoured  to  increase  his  autho- 
rity by  means  of  the  Gomarists,  and  Barneveldt  to  check  it  by 
means  of  the  Arminians:  that  several  towns  levied  soldiers  who 
were  called  Expectants,  because  they  expected  orders  from  the 
magistrate,  but  would  take  none  from  the  Stadtholder:  that  there 
were  insurrections  in  some  cities,  and  that  Prince  Maurice  vigo- 


62       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

rously  persecuted  the  opposite  party.  At  length  he  convened  a  cal- 
vinistical  council  at  Dordrecht,  composed  of  all  the  reformed 
churches  in  Europe,  except  that  of  France,  the  deputies  from  which 
were  not  permitted  by  the  King  of  France  to  attend. 

The  fathers  of  this  synod  who  had  exclaimed  so  loudly  against 
the  fathers  of  various  councils,  and  against  their  authority,  con- 
demned the  Arminians,  just  as  they  themselves  had  been  con- 
demned by  the  council  of  Trent.  Above  a  hundred  Arminian 
ministers  were  banished  from  the  United  Provinces.  Prince  Mau- 
rice chose  twenty-six  commissioners  from  the  nobility  and  the 
magistrates,  to  try  the  grand  pensionary  Barneveldt,  the  celebrated 
Grotius,  and  some  others  of  the  Arminian  party.  They  had  been 
kept  six  months  in  confinement,  previous  to  their  trial. 

One  of  the  chief  motives  of  the  revolt  of  the  Seven  Provinces, 
and  of  the  house  of  Orange,  against  Spain,  was  the  Duke  of  Al- 
va's severity,  in  suffering  the  accused  to  languish  for  a  long  period 
in  confinement,  without  bringing  them  to  trial,  and  in  appointing 
commissioners  to  condemn  them.  The  same  grievances  which  had 
caused  such  complaints  under  the  Spanish  monarchy,  were  re- 
vived in  the  bosom  of  liberty.  Barneveldt  was  beheaded  at  the 
Hague,  more  unjustly  than  Count  Egmont,  and  Count  Horn  at 
Brussels.  He  was  an  old  man  of  seventy,  who  had  served  the  Re- 
X>wb\iz  forty  years  in  the  cabinet,  with  as  much  success  as  Maurice 
and  his  brothers  had  served  her  in  the  field.  The  sentence  im- 
ported, "  That  he  had  done  all  he  could  to  vex  the  Church  of  God." 

A  charming  anecdote  is  related  of  the  admirable  conduct  of 
the  widow  of  Barneveldt.  After  he  had  perished  on  the  scaffold, 
his  sons,  Rene  and  William,  entered  into  a  conspiracy  to  revenge 
his  death,  in  which  they  were  discovered.  William  fled,  but  Rene 
was  taken  and  condemned  to  die.  His  mother  solicited  his  pardon 
of  Prince  Maurice,  who  replied,  "  It  appears  strange  that  you  do 
that  for  your  son,  which  you  refused  to  do  for  your  husband;"  to 
which  she  nobly  replied,  "  I  did  not  ask  pardon  for  my  husband, 
because  he  was  innocent ;  I  ask  it  for  my  son,  because  he  is  guilty." 

The  view  from  the  steeple  of  this  church  is  esteemed  the  most 
beautiful  in  Holland,  and  is  remarkable  fine  and  extensive;  but  the 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  63 

beauty  of  the  scenery  is  principally  at  a  distance,  as  the  land  im- 
mediately surrounding  the  town  is  boggy,  dotted  with  piles  of 
white  turf.  The  chimes  of  this  church,  or  as  they  are  called,  the 
Carillons,  are  very  numerous,  consisting  of  four  or  five  hundred 
bells,  which  are  celebrated  for  the  sweetness  of  their  tones.  This- 
species  of  music  is  entirely  of  Dutch  origin,  and  in  Holland  and 
the  countries  that  formerly  belonged  to  her,  it  can  only  be  heard 
in  great  perfection.  The  French  and  Italians  have  never  imitated 
the  Dutch  in  this  taste;  we  have  made  the  attempt  in  some  of  our 
churches,  but  in  such  a  miserably  bungling  manner,  that  the  nerves 
of  even  a  Dutch  skipper  would  scarcely  be  able  to  endure  it. 

These  carillons  are  played  upon  by  means  of  a  kind  of  keys 
communicating  with  the  bells,  as  those  of  the  piano  forte  and 
organ  do  with  strings  and  pipes,  by  a  person  called  the  Caril- 
loneur,  who  is  regularly  instructed  in  the  science,  the  labor  of  the 
practical  part  of  which  is  very  severe,  he  being  almost  always  ob- 
liged to  perform  in  his  shirt  with  his  collar  unbuttoned,  and  gene- 
rally forced  by  exertion  into  a  profuse  perspiration,  some  of  the 
keys  requiring  a  two  pound  weight  to  depress  them :  after  the 
performance,  the  Carilloneur  is  frequently  obliged  immediately  to 
go  to  bed  :  by  pedals  communicating  with  the  great  bells,  he  is 
enabled  with  his  feet  to  play  the  base  to  several  sprightly  and  even 
difficult  airs,  which  he  performs  with  both  his  hands  upon  the  up- 
per species  of  keys,  which  are  projecting  sticks,  wide  enough 
asunder  to  be  struck  with  violence  and  celerity  by  either  of  the 
two  hands  edgeways,  without  the  danger  of  hitting  the  adjoining 
keys.  The  player  uses  a  thick  leather  covering  for  the  little  finger 
of  each  hand,  to  prevent  the  excessive  pain  which  the  violence  of 
the  stroke,  necessary  to  produce  sufficient  sound,  requires:  these 
musicians  are  very  dextrous,  and  will  play  pieces  in  three  parts, 
producing  the  first  and  second  treble  with  the  two  hands  on  the  up- 
per set  of  keys,  and  the  base  as  before  described.  By  this  invention  a 
whole  town  is  entertained  in  every  quarter  of  it ;  that  spirit  of  in- 
dustry which  pervades  the  kingdom,  no  doubt  originally  sugges- 
ted this  sudorific  mode  of  amusing  a  large  population,  without 
making  it  necessary  for  them  to  quit  their  avocations  one  moment 


(?4  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

to  enjoy  them.  They  have  often  sounded  to  my  ear,  at  a  distance, 
like  the  sounds  of  a  very  sweet  hand-organ;  but  the  want  of  some- 
thing to  stop  the  vibration  of  each  bell,  to  prevent  the  notes  of  one 
passage  from  running  into  another,  is  a  desideratum  which  would 
render  this  sort  of  music  still  more  highly  delightful.  Holland  is 
the  only  country  I  have  been  in,  where  the  sound  of  bells  was  gra- 
tifying. The  dismal  tone  of  our  own  on  solemn  occasions,  and  the 
horrible  indiscriminate  clashing  of  the  bells  of  the  Greek  church 
in  Russia,  are,  at  least  to  my  ear,  intolerable  nuisances.  I  after- 
wards learnt  that  the  carillons  at  Amsterdam  have  three  octaves, 
with  all  the  semi-tones  complete  on  the  manual,  and  two  octaves 
in  the  pedals ;  each  key  for  the  natural  sound  projects  near  a  foot, 
and  those  for  the  flats  and  sharps,  which  are  played  several  inches 
higher,  only  half  as  much.  The  British  army  was  equally  surpris- 
ed and  gratified,  by  hearing  upon  the  carillons  of  the  principal 
church  at  Alkmaar,  their  favorite  air  of  "  God  save  the  king" 
played  in  a  masterly  manner,  when  they  entered  that  town. 

In  this  church  is  a  superb  monument  raised  to  the  memory  of 
William  the  First,  the  great  Prince  of  Orange,  in  the  east  end  of 
the  church,  which  is  semicircular,  and  a  range  of  semicircular 
pillars  support  the  roof:  within  these  pillars  is  a  large  space  railed 
off,  and  paved  with  black  and  white  marble,  under  which  is  the 
family  vault  of  the  House  of  Orange;  in  the  centre  is  the  monu- 
ment, a  sarcophagus  on  which  is  placed  a  marble  figure  of  the 
above  prince,  in  his  robes  after  death:  at  his  feet  is  a  dog,  the  ex- 
pression of  whose  countenance  is  very  much  admired;  above  is  a 
marble  canopy  supported  by  four  buttresses  of  white  marble,  and 
twenty  columns  of  black  and  gold  in  fine  style:  the  epitaph,  in 
small  obscure  characters,  is  inscribed  upon  a  tablet  held  up  by  two 
boys  in  bronze,  and  at  each  corner  of  the  tomb  stands  a  bronze 
figure,  the  first  representing  Liberty  with  a  cap,  inscribed  with 
aurea  libertas;  the  second  is  Fortitude,  the  third  Religion,  and  the 
fourth  Justice,  not  blind,  but  ardently  gazing  upon  the  balance  in 
her  hand.  Under  an  arch  at  the  head  of  the  tomb  is  a  brozen  statue 
of  the  same  prince,  and  at  the  other  end  a  figure  of  Fame  just 
taking  wing.    The  other  internal  parts  of  this  edifice  are  adorned 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND,  &$ 

with  the  usual  mortuary  decorations  in  Holland,  long  sable  lines  of 
escutcheons.  I  am  as  little  fond  of  describing,  as  I  am  sure  my  reader 
must  be  of  reading,  minute  descriptions  of  monuments;  but  I  have 
been  particular  here,  because  the  Dutch,  with  their  accustomed 
frugality,  do  not  much  indulge  in  mausoleums  and  statues.  In 
France,  the  late  revolution,  in  its  savage  phrenzy,  with  hands  still 
reeking  with  the  blood  of  the  dying,  tore  open  the  tombs  of  princes, 
and  their  favourites,  and  disfigured  the  consecrated  depositaries 
with  the  shattered  fragments  of  their  marble  mausoleums:  that  re- 
volution, which,  with  the  guillotine  in  front,  and  the  broken  cross 
in  the  rear,  threatened  to  spread  over  and  waste  the  whole  of  civili- 
zed Europe,  marched  to  Holland,  were  thousands  flocked  to  its 
standard ;  but  it  there  very  rarely  inebriated  the  mind,  and  never 
overpowered  the  national  love  of  economy;  it  taught  them  to  de- 
spise and  expel  their  living  princes,  but  with  pious  frugality  they 
spared  the  costly  asylums  of  their  illustrious  dead. 


tf6        TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

SPIRITED  REMONSTRANCE.. ..ANECDOTE  OF  A  REGICIDE. ...INTE* 
RESTING  ANECDOTE  OF  FRANK  HALS  AND  VANDYKE... .A  DUTCH 
BLOOMFIELD... .DELIGHTFUL  PASSAGE  TO  THE  HAGUE. ...DUTCH 
DISCUSSION  OF  DESDEMONA's  WISH... .RYSWICK.... APPROACH  TO 
THE  HAGUE.. ..DUTCH  REVIEW. ...OLD  AND  NEW  CONSTITUTIONS 
COMPARED. ...BRIEF  REVIEW  OF  THE  ANCIENT  CONSTITUTION 
OF  HOLLAND.. ..ALSO  OF  THE  POLITICAL  HISTORY. ...REMARKS 
ON  THE   PRINCES  OF  THE  HOUSE  OF  ORANGE. 

IT  is  but  just  to  state,  however,  that,  during  their  political 
change,  many  of  the  people  displayed  great  firmness,  and  none 
more  than  the  manufacturers  of  this  town,  who  in  the  year  1803 
presented  to  the  executive  government  of  the  Batavian  republic,  a 
very  spirited  remonstrance  against  the  temporary  suspension  of  an 
edict  passed  in  1802,  prohibiting  the  importation  of  foreign  manu- 
factures of  which  the  following  is  an  extract:  "  Should  we  be  left 
destitute,"  said  they,  "  of  that  just  and  lawful  support,  which  we 
still  hope  to  obtain,  we  shall  be  compelled  to  demand,  that  the 
laws  which  forbid  the  exportation  of  manufacturing  tools  and  im- 
plements be  repealed,  in  order  that  we  may  be  enabled  to  sell  our 
valuable  tools  and  implements,  which  will  then  become  altogether 
useless  to  us,  to  foreigners  who  know  how  to  appreciate  their  va- 
lue, or  to  transplant  our  manufactories  into  countries  where  they 
daily  experience  the  encouragement  which  they  so  highly  deserve  "' 

Not  far  from  the  old  church,  the  tower  of  which  is  alarmingly 
out  of  its  perpendicular,  is  the  identical  house  in  which  William 
I.  was  murdered  by  a  bigoted  hireling  of  the  King  of  Spain  in 
1584.  A  Dutch  inscription,  placed  over  two  holes  in  the  wall  on 
the  stairs,  made  by  the  pistol  bullets  after  they  had  passed  through 
his  body,  communicates  the  savage  circumstance.  The  bigots  of 
Spain  celebrated  the  murderer  as  a  martyr,  and  his  family  were 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  67, 

ennobled  and  pensioned.  A  solitary  instance  of  honours  being  paid 
td  a  regicide.  Well  has  our  immortal  bard  observed: 

If  I  could  find  example 


Of  thousands,  that  had  struck  anointed  kings, 
And  flourish'd  after,  I'd  not  do't;  but  since 
Nor  brass,  nor  stone,  nor  parchment  bears  not  one, 
Let  villainy  itself  forswear't. 

Winter's  Tak. 

The  old  church  had  not  sufficient  attractions  to  induce  me  to 
enter  it.  The  tombs  of  Admirals  Tromp  and  Heine  are  there. 
Opposite  the  new  church,  in  the  great  square,  is  the  Stadt  or 
Town  House,  the  front  of  which  is  extensive,  and  very  curious: 
in  this  house  are  some  excellent  pictures  by  Frank  Hals,  who  died 
in  1666:  this  artist  is  justly  celebrated  for  the  beauties  of  his  co- 
louring and  penciling.  A  pleasant  anecdote  is  related  of  Vandyke's 
having  so  high  an  opinion  of  the  genius  of  this  artist,  that  he  went 
to  Haerlem,  where  Hals  lived,  for  the  sole  purpose  of  visiting  him, 
and  introduced  himself  as  a  gentleman  on  his  travels,  who  had  but 
two  hours  to  spare,  and  wished  in  that  time  to  have  his  portrait 
painted  :  Hals,  who  was  enjoying  his  bottle  at  a  tavern  at  the  time, 
sprang  from  his  companions,  and  on  the  first  canvass  he  could  lay 
his  hands  upon,  commenced  the  portrait  with  all  possible  celerity ; 
after  he  had  proceeded  some  way,  Vandyke  desired  to  look  at  his 
progress,  and  observed,  with  great  pleasantry  in  his  countenance, 
that  the  work  seemed  to  be  so  very  easy,  that  he  thought  he  could 
do  the  same :  upon  which  he  took  up  the  palette  and  pencils, 
requested  Hals  to  sit  down,  and  painted  his  portrait  in  a  quarter  of 
<$i  hour :  the  moment  Hals  saw  it,  he  exclaimed  with  rapturous 
astonishment,  "  No  one  but  Vandyke  could  have  achieved  such 
a  wonder  1"  and  embraced  him  with  transport.  Vandyke  was  de- 
sirous of  Hals  accompanying  him  to  England,  where  he  promised 
to  make  his  fortune,  but  he  declared  that  the  enjoyment  of  his  bottle 
and  his/n>/2f/  was  too  powerful  to  permit  him  to  accept  of  so  ge- 
nerous and  promising  a  proposal.  Of  this  great  painter  Vandyke 
*foid,  that  he  would  have  been  unequalled  had  he  given  more  ten- 


68  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.     , 

derness  to  his  colouring,  and  that  in  his  pencil  he  was  without  a 
rival. 

In  the  council  chamber  there  is  a  fine  composition  by  Bron- 
chorst,  who  died  1661,  representing  the  judgment  of  Solomon, 
and  another  of  Christ  driving  the  money  changers  out  of  the 
temple;  the  figures  are  finely  finished,  and  the  architecture,  in 
which  he  excelled,  truly  admirable.  In  the  great  hall  of  the  physi- 
cians and  surgeons  is  a  celebrated  picture  by  Cornelius  de  Morn 
or  Maan,  who  was  born  in  this  town,  and  who  died  1706:  the 
subject  of  it  is  a  representation  of  the  most  celebrated  doctors  and 
surgeons  of  his  time:  it  is  in  the  manner  of  Titian,  and  in  high 
estimation.  Michael  Jansen  Mirevelt,  who  died  in  1641,  was  also 
born  in  this  town  :  he  wae  an  admirable  portrait  painter,  and  is  said 
to  have  been  in  such  high  repute,  and  so  indefatigable,  that  Sandrart, 
Dcscampe,  and  the  authors  of  the  Abrege  de  la  Vie  des  Peintres 
assert,  that  he  painted  at  least  ten  thousand  portraits,  for  the  smal- 
lest of  which  he  never  received  less  than  one  hundred  and  fifty 
guilders,  or  fifteen  pounds.  In  the  surgeons'  hall  there  is  a  fine 
picture  by  this  artist. 

This  town  has  produced  also  a  self-taught  poet,  who  flourished 
rather  more  than  a  century  since,  of  the  name  of  Hubert  Noot. 
This  man,  who  is  said  to  be  the  father  of  Dutch  pastoral  and  elegiac 
poetry,  much  resembles  our  Bloomfield  in  his  early  difficulties 
and  his  talents :  he  made  his  verses  whilst  he  laboured,  and  com- 
mitted them  to  memory  from  not  being  able  to  write.  After  he 
had  taught  himself  to  read,  he  even  sold  his  wearing  apparel  to 
purchase  books.  He  died  in  1733:  his  images  are  said  to  be  highly 
poetical,  and  his  versification  melodious. 

In  the  Spin-house,  or  Bridewell,  were  several  female  priso- 
ners, many  of  whom  had  been  confined  for  several  years,  for  re- 
specting the  genial  laws  of  nature  more  than  the  sober  laws  of  the 
nation,  and  some  of  them,  for  the  same  offence,  had  been  publicly 
and  severely  flogged.  What  a  contradiction  in  this  government 
does  its  Spin  and  its  Spill-houses  present  1  In  one  place  it  sanctions 
prostitutes,  and  in  the  other  imprisons  and  scourges  them!  Per- 
haps the  legislature  may  think  that  it  punishes  the  poor  prostitute 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  69 

of  the  spill-house,  by  the  oppression  of  her  creditor  and  her 
gaoler;  and  thus,  by  Justice  presenting  a  variety  of  shapes,  she 
Realizes  the  remark  of  our  divine  bard ; 

We  must  not  make  a  scarecrow  of  the  law, 
Setting  it  to  rear  the  birds  of  prey, 
And  let  it  keep  one  shape,  till  custom  make  it 
Their  perch,  and  not  their  terror. 

Measure  for  Measure,  Act  III.  Scene  5. 

The  stranger  will  find  nothing  to  detain  him  in  this  mehn- 
choly  town  long.  In  Holland  every  traveller  naturally  becomes  am- 
phibious: the  constant  contemplation  of  so  much  water  quickly 
engenders  all  the  inclinations  of  a  webfooted  animal,  and  he  soon 
feels  out  of  his  proper  element  when  out  of  a  canal.  Right  merri- 
ly did  I  follow  my  commissionary  and  his  wheel  barrow  with  my 
baggage  through  the  whole  town,  until  I  reached  the  Hague  gste, 
when  my  favourite  conveyance,  the  treckschuyt,  was  ready  to 
start.  The  boat-bell  rung,  all  the  party  got  on  board,  and  away  we 
glided,  passing  on  each  side  of  us  the  most  lovely  close  scenery. 
Instead  of  seeing,  as  had  been  represented  to  me  in  England,  a  dull 
monotonous  scene  of  green  canals,  stunted  willows,  and  from  a 
solitary  house  or  two,  foggy  merchants  stupidly  gazing  in  fixed 
attention  upon  frog  water,  the  canal  was  enlivened  with  boats  of 
pleasure  and  traffic  continually  passing  and  repassing,  the  noble 
level  road  on  the  right,  broad  enough  to  admit  four  or  five  carria- 
ges abreast,  thickly  planted  with  rows  of  fine  elms,  the  number  of 
curricles  and  carriages,  and  horses,  driving  close  to  the  margin  of 
of  the  water,  the  fine  woods,  beautiful  gardens,  country  houses,  not 
two  of  which  were  similiar;  the  eccentricity  of  the  little  summer 
temples  hanging  over  the  edges  of  the  canal;  the  occasional  views 
of  rich  pasture  land,  seen  as  I  saw  them,  under  a  rich,  warm  sky, 
formed  a  tout  ensemble  as  delightful  as  it  was  novel,  and  very  in- 
telligibly expressed  our  approach  to  the  residence  of  sovereignty. 
The  single  ride  from  Delft  to  the  Hague  would  alone  have  repaid 
the  trouble  and  occasional  anxiety  I  experienced  in  getting,  into, 
and  afterwards  out  of  the  country. 


70  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

All  the  principal  couritry-houses  have  a  wooden  letter-box 
standing  upon  the  margin  of  the  canal,  into  which  one  of  the 
boatmen,  upon  the  treckschuyt  being  steered  close  to  the  adjoining" 
bank,  without  stopping,  drops  the  letters  and  parcels  directed  to 
the  family  residing  there.  In  no  part  of  the  continent  is  social  in- 
tercourse and  communication  so  frequent,  cheap,  and  certain. 

For  keeping  the  dams  and  roads  in  repair,  turnpikes  are  esta- 
blished at  proper  distances,  and  the  care  of  their  repair  is  confided 
to  directors,  who  are  always  gentlemen  of  high  respectability,  and 
receive  a  fixed  salary  for  their  services.  The  principal  roads  are 
kept  in  good  condition;  and,  on  account  of  the  flatness  of  the  coun- 
try, are  very  easy  for  the  horses,  but  the  bye  roads  are  intolerably 
bad. 

In  the  steerage  I  found  three  very  handsome  and  well-bred 
Dutch  young  ladies  seated,  one  of  whom  spoke  English  very  Well: 
they  all  insisted  upon  my  being  an  Englishman  the  moment  I  en- 
tered the  boat ;  ho^v  they  could  think  so,*  the  spirit  of  physiognomy, 
if  there  be  such  a  spirit,  must  explain;  for  in  my  best  hours  of 
health  and  d.  light,  John  Bull  would  scarcely  acknowledge  me  far 
one  of  his  family. 

My  charming  companions  talked  much  of  Shakspeare  and 
Milton,  with  both  of  whom  they  seemed  to  be  familiar.  They  en- 
tered with  much  ability  on  Desdemona's  wish,  alluding  to  her 
passion  for  Othello,  "  that  Heaven  had  made  her  such  a  man." 
Two  of  the  three  fair  disputants  contended  that  she  would  have  been 
more  happy  had  Providence  made  her  a  man,  and  such  a  man  as 
Othello ;  the  other  observed  that  was  impossible,  for  as  she  was 
deeply  in  love  with  the  Moor  it  would  have  been  irreconcileable  to 
her  passion  to  wish  to  be  of  his  own  sex,  by  which  she  could  have  felt 
only  friendship  for  him.  I  was  so  pleased  with  my  fair  voyageurs, 
who  talked,  sung,  and  laughed,  with  so  much  talent,  taste,  and  viva- 
city, that  our  two  hours  or  six  miles,  the  distance  from  Delft  to 
the  Hague  passed  rapidly  away,  and  tempted  me  not  to  quit 
the  vessel  to  visit  the  village  of  Ryswick,  which  lies  about  half 
way,  and  is  only  about  half  a  mile  from  the  canal,  and,  I  am  told, 
abounds  with  beauty  and  richness  of  scenery.  It  is  known  to  tbe' 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  71 

political  world  for  the  celebrated  peace  concluded  there  at  a  little 
palace  of  William  HI.  called  the  House  of  Neubeurg,  after  a  nine 
years'  war,  on  the  20th  September,  1 697,  between  Louis  XIV. 
and  the  confederate  powers,  called  the  Treaty  of  Ryswick.  I  men- 
tion this  as  a  guide  for  strangers  who  may  follow  me,  and  who 
may  not  be  fascinated  as  I  was  by  my  situation  in  the  boat  and 
content  with  the  highly  cultivated  and  embellished  scenery  around 
me.  A  man  must  be  in  bad  humour  with  nature  indeed,  who  can 
pass,  in  the  summer,  from  Delft  to  the  Hague  without  emotions 
of  strong  delight. 

As  we  approached  the  Hague,  the  scenery  became  more  refin- 
ed and  beautiful,  and  the  last  light  of  a  setting  sun  purpled  the 
lofty  edifices  of  that  celebrated  city ;  it  was  quite  dusk  as  we  pas- 
sed the  water-houses,  in  which  the  royal  yachts  are  contained,  the 
rich  gilded  carving  of  which  was  just  visible  through  the  grated 
doors ;  and  after  gliding  along  the  suburbs,  which  were  well  light- 
ed though  not  in  this  respect  comparable  with  London,  I  disem- 
barked, bade  adieu  to  my  charming  companions,  and  proceeded 
with  my  usual  attendant,  through  the  greater  part  of  the  city  to 
the  Mareschal  de  Turenne,  an  excellent  hotel,  but  at  a  most  in- 
convenient distance  from  the  place  where  the  Delft  boats  stop*  and 
where  those  for  Ley  den  or  Haerlem  start  from. 

The  morning  after  my  arrival  there  was  a  grand  review  of  the 
Dutch  troops,  who  presented  a  very  soldierly  appearance  ;  that  of 
the  body-guard,  both  horse  and  infantry,  was  very  superb  in  mili- 
tary appointments.  I  was  well  informed  that  the  king  felt  so  secure 
in  his  government,  that  there  were  not  at  this  time  twenty  French 
soldiers  in  the  country,  and  that,  accompanied  by  his  queen,  he 
was  attending  to  his  health  at  the  waters  of  Wisbaden,  in  the 
south  of  Germany.  The  French  interest,  however,  was  predomi- 
nant, and  it  was  indispensably  necessary  that  the  passport  of  every 
foreigner  should  be  countersigned  by  the  French  consul,  whose 
fiat  upon  all  such  occasions  was  final. 

The  king  had  been  at  the  Hague,  or  rather  at  his  palace  in  the 
wood  adjoining,  only  about  six  weeks,  in  the  course  of  which,  I 
was  credibly  informed,  he  had  displayed  uncommon  activity  aiy\ 


72  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

talent  in  the  discharge  of  the  great  duties  of  his  station.  Although 
an  invalid,  he  was  at  his  bureau  with  his  ministers  every  morning 
at  six  o'clock,  which  he  never  quitted  until  the  business  of  the  day 
was  completed.  The  poor-laws  occupied  much  of  his  attention, 
and  they  are,  I  hear,  to  undergo  a  considerable  amelioration.  I 
have  already  mentioned  his  abolition  of  useless  offices,  sinecures, 
and  unmerited  pensions,  the  reduction  of  excessive  salaries,  and 
an  extension  of  the  time  devoted  to  the  service  of  the  state  in  the 
public  offices.  These  advantages  could  only  be  expected  to  flow 
from  that  vast  power  which  revolutions,  after  their  effervescence 
has  subsided,  generally  deposit  with  some  fortunate  individual, 
.who,  if  he  has  talent  and  good  inclination,  is  enabled  to  consult  the 
prosperity  of  a  state,  by  measures  at  once  prompt,  summary,  and 
efficacious,  unretarded  by  forms,  clashing  interests,  or  hoary  pre- 
judices. The  first  of  the  new  has  ever  this  advantage  over  the  last 
of  an  old  dynasty. 

The  hereditary  successor  of  a  long  line  of  princes  is  like  the 
owner  of  an  ancient  mansion  devolved  to  him  by  hereditary  right; 
he  must  take  the  edifice  as  it  is,  with  its  commodious  and  incon- 
venient chambers,  its  fantastic  turrets  and  heavy  chimney-pieces, 
its  dark  and  its  cheerful  passages;  or  if  he  alters,  it  must  be  with 
a  cautious  and  gentle  hand,  otherwise  the  whole  fabric  will  fall 
about  his  ears ;  whilst  he  who  is  elevated  by  revolutions  to  com- 
mand, may  choose  his  ground,  build  wholly  with  new,  or  partly 
a\  ith  the  old  materials  of  the  prostrate  constitution. 

In  order  to  appreciate  the  present  constitution,  it  may  be  ne- 
cessary to  take  a  slight  review  of  the  old  one.  Anterior  to  1747 
the  United  Provinces  subsisted  in  one  common  confederacy,  yet 
each  province  had  an  internal  government  or  constitution,  wholly- 
independent  of  the  others,  called  the  States  of  such  a  Province, 
and  its  delegates  the  Stales  General^  in  whom  the  supreme  sove- 
reignty of  the  whole  confederacy  was  lodged;  and  notwithstanding 
the  number  of  delegates  which  a  province  might  send,  yet  in  every 
constitutional  measure  each  province  had  only  one  voice,  and  the 
sanction  of  every  province,  and  of  every  city  within  it,  was  neces- 
sary before  such  a  measure  could  pass  into  a  law,  and  every  reso* 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  73 

lution  of  the  states  of  a  particular  province  required  unanimous 
adoption.  The  Council  of  State  consisted  also  of  deputies  from  the 
several  provinces,  but  differed  in  its  constitution  from  the  States 
General;  it  was  composed  of  twelve  persons,  of  whom  Holland 
sent  three;  Guelderland,  two;  Zealand,  two;  Utrecht,  two;  Fries- 
land,  one;  Overyssel,  one;  and  Groningen,  one.  Such  deputies 
could  only  vote  personally :  it  was  their  department  to  prepare 
estimates,  and  ways  and  means,  &x.  to  be  submitted  to  the  States 
General.  The  states  of  the  proviaces  were  styled  "  Noble  and 
Mighty  Lords;"  those  of  Holland,  "  Noble  and  most  Mighty 
Lords;"  and  the  States  General,  "  High  and  Mighty  Lords,"  or 
*'  the  Lords  of  the  States  General  of  the  United  Netherlands,"  or 
"  their  High  Mightinesses."  Queen  Elizabeth  called  them  in  her 
time  Messieurs  the  States.  The  Chamber  of  Accounts,  in  which 
all  the  public  accounts  were  audited,  and  composed  of  provincial 
deputies,  was  placed  under  these  two  bodies.  The  executive  part 
of  the  Admiralty  was  committed  to  five  colleges,  in  the  three 
maritime  provinces  of  Holland,  Zealand  and  Frieseland.  In  Hol- 
land the  people  were  excluded  from  choosing  their. representatives 
or  magistrates.  In  Amsterdam,  which  had  precedence  in  all  public 
deliberations,  the  magistracy  was  lodged  in  thirty-six  senators  cho- 
sen for  life,  and  every  vacancy  filled  up  by  the  survivors,  and  the 
representatives  for  the  cities  in  the  province  of  Holland,  were 
elected  by  the  same  senate. 

Such  a  Complicated  piece  of  machinery  must  have  proceeded 
slowly  if  it  proceeded  regularly,  and  must  have  been  constantly 
exposed  to  the  peril  of  being  disordered,  without  a  principal  head 
to  guide  it,  which  led  to  the  stadtholdership  becoming  hereditary 
in  the  year  1747.  The  wonderful  and  constant  vicissitudes  to  which 
Holland  has  been  exposed,  rendered  such  an  expedient,  however, 
objectionable;  it  afterwards  proved  to  be  in  many  instances  neces- 
sary to  the  preservation  of  the  country.  The  history  of  the  repub- 
lic for  147  years,  namely,  from  its  first  entering  the  field  of  battle 
in  1566  to  the  peace  of  Utrecht  in  1713,  is  a  tissue  of  battles  lost 
and  won.  The  twelve  years'  truce  which  produced  an  hiatus  in  her 
many  wars  with  Spain,  did  not  extend  to  the  Indian  possession's 


74  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

of  the  Dutch;  and  after  a  prodigal  effusion  of  blood,  the  peace  ob- 
tained in  1648  lasted  only  four  years.  The  first  war  with  Great 
Britain  continued  to  1654;  and  scarcely  had  the  republic  tasted  of 
the  sweets  of  peace  before  she  was  roused  to  resist  at  the  same 
time  the  arms  of  Portugal,  Denmark,  and  Sweden;  and  in  the 
North  their  hostilities  continued  till  1660,  and  in  the  South  to 
1661 :  then  immediately  followed  a  fierce  contest  with  Great  Bri- 
tain, which  did  not  close  till  the  treaty  at  Breda  in  1667,  and  the 
moment  that  was  concluded,  the  country  was  invaded  by  Louis 
the  Fourteenth. 

A  respite  of  three  years  followed,  when  the  republic  was  unex- 
pectedly attacked  by  the  united  forces  of  England  and  France, 
both  on  the  sea  and  shore;  and  after  a  carnage  of  six  years  more, 
the  peace  of  Nimeguen  was  concluded  in  1678;  which,  however, 
was  fettered  with  several  severe  stipulations  imposed  by  the  French 
monarch.  In  1688  the  Prince  of  Orange  sailed  for  England,  to 
occupy  its  vacant  throne;  an  event  which  involved  the  Dutch  in  a 
nine  years'"  war:  the  peace  of  Ryswick  was  scarcely  signed,  when 
the  Spanish  succession  again  called  them  forth  to  arms,  which 
they  did  not  lay  down  till  after  a  slaughter  of  eleven  years. 

The  peace  of  Utrecht  gave  them  a  slight  repose,  which  was 
frequently  disturbed  by  the  insults  and  predatory  attacks  of  the 
African  corsairs  upon  the  Dutch  flag  in  the  Mediterranean.  The 
internal  troubles  of  the  republic,  from  its  revolution,  and  its  final 
submission  to  the  French  arms  followed.  Such  is  the  brief  history 
of  a  country  which,  in  a  political  and  physical  view,  may  be  truly- 
called  extraordinary. 

The  first  princes  of  the  House  of  Orange,  by  the  illustrious 
services  which  they  rendered  the  state  by  their  wai's  and  negotia- 
tions, were  rewarded  by  its  confidence  and  employments  of  the 
highest  dignity  and  trust,  which  were  conferred  upon  them  by  the 
grateful  approbation  and  concurrence  of  the  most  rigid  republicans. 

These  princes,  in  obedience  to  that  law  of  nature  which  seems 
to  be  pretty  equally  predominant  amongst  all  her  sons,  extended 
the  power  they  enjoyed  as  often  as  they  had  the  means,  and  what 
they  gave  to  themselves  was  taken  from  the  liberties  of  the  people ; 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.        75 

iwt  they  dazzled  the  eyes  of  the  subject,  and  concealed  the  encroach- 
ment, or  legitimated  it  by  the  brilliancy  of  illustrious  achievements. 
A  small  territory,  scooped  from  the  ocean,  rose  to  rank  and  esti- 
mation in  the  scale  of  nations,  by  its  valour,  its  riches,  and  its  arts, 
and  was  enabled  to  resist  the  mighty  power  of  England  and  France, 
by  the  genius  and  energy  of  succession  of  five  princes  of  the 
House  of  Orange,  for  upwards  of  a  century. 

The  stadtholderate  remained  vacant  from  the  death  of  William 
the  Third,  who  by  his  talents  preserved  the  republic  from  impend- 
ing danger,  till  fresh  difficulties,  the  wishes  of  the  nation,  and 
the  powerful  interposition  of  George  the  Second,  in  1747,  induced 
them  to  confer  the  dignity  of  stadcholder  on  William  the  Fourth, 
father  of  the  last  stadtholder,  and  to  make  it  hereditary  in  his  fa- 
mily. This  prince  (I  mean  the  father)  possessed  considerable 
talents,  from  which  the  country  did  not  derive  much  advantage, 
for  he  died  soon  after  his  elevation  to  the  dignity.  By  this  act  the 
offices  of  captain-general  and  admiral-general  were  united  in  the 
person  of  the  stadtholder,  who  also  became  president  of  every 
province ;  and  his  power  and  influence  was  such  as  to  enable  him 
to  change  every  deputy,  magistrate,  and  officer,  in  every  province 
and  city,  at  pleasure,  by  which  he  had  the  almost  complete  for- 
ination  of  the  States  General,  although  he  had  no  voice  in  it: 


76  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLANB. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


REMARKS  ON  THE  LAST  STADTHOLDER....ALSO  ON  THE  PRINCESS 
OF  ORANGE. ...HER  PRESUMPTION  AND  INDISCRETION. ...HATRED 

OF  THE  DUTCH  TO    THE  HOUSE    OF    ORANGE FETE    AT    THE 

HAGUE  ON  THE  FLIGHT  OF  THAT  FAMILY REASONS  ASSIGNED 

FOR  THE  PROGRESS  OF  THE  FRENCH    ARMS. ...FOR  THE  GLORI- 
OUS TRIUMPH    OF     BRITISH  PROWESS CONDUCT  OF   THE  NEW 

GOVERNMENT    TOWARDS  SOME  OF  THE  SERVANTS  OF  THE  OLD 
THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION  OF  HOLLAND. 

THE  authority  described  in  the  last  chapter,  so  princely  and 
powerful,  in  all  human  probability  would  have  continued  in  the 
family  of  the  prince  upon  whom  it  was  conferred  to  this  hour,  and 
descended  to  their  posterity,  had  the  last  stadtholder  possessed  the 
virtue,  spirit,  and  wisdom  of  his  ancestors :  but  the  imbecility  of 
his  character,  more  than  those  wonderful  events  which  were  agi- 
tating other  portions  of  Europe,  was  the  principal  cause  of  the 
overthrow  of  his  house.  Without  any  portion  of  ability,  William 
the  Fifth  was  alive  only  to  his  own  aggrandizement  and  depraved 
pleasures.  The  attachment  which  he  had  been  taught  to  cherish  for 
the  politics  of  England,  had  long  marked  him  out  as  an  object  Of 
hatred  with  the  Dutch :  under  his  auspices  they  saw  their  own 
trade  deteriorated,  and  the  ocean  covered  with  the  commercial 
vessels  of  the  British  empire,  wafting  wealth  into  her  ports  from 
every  quarter  of  the  globe,  the  resources  and  energies  of  the  re- 
public consuming  without  any  attempt  to  resuscitate  them,  until  at. 
length  his  weak  and  culpable  conduct  closed  in  the  conquest  of  the 
country,  and  the  precipitate  retreat  of  himself  and  family.  The 
conduct  of  the  Princess  of  Orange  also  contributed  not  a  little  to 
augment  the  displeasure  of  the  people.  She  had  that  influence 
over  him  which  strong  minds  always  have  over  weak  ones,  but  in 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  77 

no  instance  were  her  counsels  advantageous  to  the  state,  and  she 
had  no  one  quality  to  conciliate  the  lower  classes  of  the  people. 

During  the  troubles  of  1787,  she  created  uncommon  disgust 
by  answering  in  her  own  name  an  address  of  the  States  General 
to  the  prince  her  husband,  when  she  had  no  recognised  character 
in  the  republic,  and  consequently  no  right  whatever  to  interfere  in 
its  affairs.  Amongst  other  acts  of  presumption  in  the  same  year, 
so  memorable  in  the  Dutch  annals,  when  the  Orange  party,  sup- 
ported by  Prussia  and  Great-Britain,  acquired  the  ascendency,  she 
managed  the  negotiations  between  the  Duke  of  Brunswick,  who 
commanded  the  Prussian  army,  and  the  city  of  Amsterdam,  in  the 
course  of  which  she  declared  in  a  tone  of  angry  insolence,  that  the 
generosity  of  her  disposition  induced  her  to  spare  the  lives  of  the 
guilty,  but  that  they  should  be  held  incapable  of  discharging  the 
duties  of  any  public  trust  in  future.  Among  the  persons  whom  she 
caused  to  be  dismissed  were  several  distinguished  and  popular 
citizens,  the  survivors  of  whom  were,  upon  the  overthrow  of  the 
house  of  Orange,  called  to  participate  in  the  government  of  the 
country  with  the  most  flattering  marks  of  congratulation. 

This  princess  I  know  has  had  her  admirers,  she  has  been  ex- 
tolled for  her  spirit,  and  capaciousness  of  mind ;  but  upon  almost 
every  occasion  her  talents  were  misapplied,  and  only  served  to 
augment  the  storm  that  burst  over  and  laid  the  glory  of  her  house 
prostrate.  What  was  to  close  a  reign  (if  such  it  may  be  called),  so 
characterized  by  weakness  and  disaster,  required  not  the  spirit  of 
a  prophet  to  foretel.  The  French  revolution  found  an  unembar- 
rassed introduction  into  Holland,  and  the  feeble  resistance  which 
the  Dutch  troops  opposed  to  the  French  armies,  pretty  clearly  de- 
monstrates the  estimation  in  which  the  country  held  its  unworthy 
ruler,  and  the  desire  they  had  of  delivering  hemselves  from  him 
and  the  influence  of  England  upon  their  councils.  It  is  well  known, 
that  in  the  last  war,  the  Dutch  refused  the  sick  and  wounded  of 
their  allies,  the  British  army,  admission  into  Delft,  and  a  body  of 
burghers  was  formed  at  Amsterdam,  to  prevent  the  entrance  of 
foreign  troops;  in  other  words,  the  English,  into  that  city.  In  his 
last  struggles  the  Stadtholder  obtained  a  plenary  power,  resembling 


78  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

that  of  a  dictator,  a  short  time  before  the  French  army  crossed  the 
Waal,  an  event  that  decided  the  fate  of  Holland.  Aukwardry 
clothed  with  this  vast  authority,  he  issued  a  proclamation,  invoking 
the  people  to  rise  en  masse  to  oppose  their  invaders :  in  obedience 
to  fhe  invocation,  the  Dutch  army  was  strengthened  by  the  acces- 
sion of  about  fifty  recruits.  An  order  then  followed,  that  throughout 
the  United  Provinces  three  houses  should  furnish  one  man  for  the 
defence  of  the  state,  the  order  experienced  a  worse  fate  than  the 
proclamation. 

The  public  antipathy  to  the  Stadtholder  and  his  government 
was  now  raised  to  its  highest  elevation :  the  French  entered  the 
country  in  triumph,  and  the  flight  of  the  Prince  of  Orange  was 
received  with  enthusiastic,  expressions  of  exultation.  On  the  1 6th 
of  February.  1795,  a  solemn  assembly  of  the  deputies  from  all  the 
provinces  was  held  at  the  Hague,  at  which  meeting  the  stadthold- 
erat ?  was  formally  declared  to  be  abolished  for  ever,  and  in  the 
evening  of  -hat  day  a  grand  republican  festival  was  celebrated,  at 
which  the  Dutch  legislators,  the  French  representatives,  and  the 
chiefs  of  the  army  assisted.  When  the  British  troops  afterwards 
landed  at  the  Helder,  they  found  the  sense  of  the  people  still  the 
same.  It  was  not  the  dread  of  the  revenge  of  the  French  army, 
that  induced  them  to  observe  such  marked  and  unequivocal  disin- 
clination to  co-operate  with  a  force  which  professed  to  have  in 
view  the  achievement  of  salutary  objects  for  their  benefit,  but  the 
unextinguishable  abhorrence  in  which  they  held  the  houseof  Orange, 
in  whose  name  the  English  army  endeavoured  to  wrest  the  coun- 
try from  the  arms  of  France;  and,  I  believe,  since  the  death  of  the 
son  of  the  Stadtholder,  a  young  prince  of  great  promise,  that 
throughout  the  kingdom  scarcely  one  partizan  for  the  house  of 
Orange  is  to  be  fo-md.  7 

The  fate  of  Holland  is  a  memorable  lesson  to  other  nations. 
We  wonder  that  the  power  of  France  rolls  on  with  overwhelming 
fury :  the  military  observer  traces  her  resistless  march  to  her  bril- 
liant improvements  in  modern  warfare;  the  politician  to  the  mag- 
nitude, energy^  and  endless  reinforcements  of  her  troops  ;  the  su- 
perstitious to  her  good  fortune,  and  the  moralist  to  the  divine 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.        79 

interposition  to  rebuke  the  vices  of  her  enemies.  They  forget,  or 
will  not  see,  that  the  victories  of  France  have  hitherto  been  the 
triumph  of  genius,  promptitude,  and  energy,  over  ignorance,  pro- 
crastination, and  supineness:  of  vigorous  over  weak  councils;  of 
able,  experienced,  and  faithful,  over  hereditary,  senseless,  and  per- 
fidious commanders.  These  are  the  causes  that  made  Austria  bow 
her  neck  to  the  chief  of  the  French  empire,  and  in  ten  days  offered 
up  Prussia  to  the  manes  of  Poland,  in  memorable  expiation  of  the 
horrors  perpetrated  in  that  devoted  country  in  1771.  In  the  glori- 
ous triumphs  of  the  British  flag  upon  the  ocean,  we  saw  great  yield- 
ing to  greater  skill :  in  Egypt  and  Media  we  beheld  indisputable 
heroism  yielding  to  superior  intrepidity,  directed  by  great  mili- 
tary skill,  and  united  to  high  national  honour. 

The  moderation  and  mildness  which  characterized  the  conduct' 
of  the  French,  rendered  them  popular  by  a  comparison  with  the 
rigorous  folly  of  the  Stadtholder  in  the  last  convulsions  of  his  ex- 
piring power.  The  French  checked  and  kept  in  complete  awe 
some  of  the  most  illiterate  and  most  depraved  of  the  Dutch  repub- 
licans who  were  preparing  to  avenge  the  long  and  galling  triumph 
of  their  adversaries,  with  sharp  and  sanguinary  resentment;  not  a 
drop  of  blood  was  judicially  shed  upon  the  overthrow  of  the  ancient 
government  of  the  United  Provinces,  although  it  had  endured  for 
two  centuries;  and  the  pensioners  of  the  house  of  Orange,  whose 
stipends  were  the  rewards  of  meritorious  services,  received,  and 
continue  to  receive,  their  salaries  with  generous  punctuality,  with- 
out being  obliged  to  take  an  oath  of  hatred  to  the  Stadtholder,  as 
other  persons  who  lived  by  the  bounty  of  the  republic  were  obli- 
ged to  do.  After  Bonaparte  had  assumed  the  imperial  purple  of 
France,  and  determined  upon  creating  a  dynasty  of  sovereigns  in 
his  own  family,  he  prepared  the  Dutch  for  the  conversion  of  their 
republic  into  a  kingdom,  and  the  reception  of  a  king. 

On  the  9th  of  June,  1805,  Messrs.  Verhuel  and  Van  Styrum 
returned  from  Paris.  His  Excellency  M.  Verhuel,  after  paying  a 
visit  to  the  acting  pensionary,  held  conferences  with  the  secreta- 
ries of  state,  and  opened  the  special  mission  entrusted  to  him  by 
Mi  Imperial  Highness  Prince  Louis  Napoleon,  as  King  of  Hoi- 


80  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

land,  as  the  result  of  several  resolutions  for  the  organization  of  tho 
government,  and  communicating,  that  his  majesty  the  king  had 
appointed  M.  Verhuel  minister  of  the  marine,  and  M.  Gogel, 
minister  of  finance ;  the  other  secretaries  of  state  being  charged 
to  continue  in  their  posts  till  the  king's  arrival. 

The  same  gentleman  repaired  in  person  to  the  assembly  of 
their  High  Mightinesses,  where  also,  in  pursuance  of  his  commis- 
sion, he  expressed  his  majesty's  desire,  and  made  the  necessary 
communications;  he  also  proceeded  to  the  council  of  state;  after 
which  his  excellency  assumed  the  executive  power,  in  the  name, 
and  by  the  authority  of  his  majesty,  whilst  the  pensionary,  who 
had  acted  ad  interim,  resigned  that  post,  and  resumed  that  of  pre- 
sident of  their  High  Mightinesses.  The  following  is  the  new  con- 
stitution which  has  been  digested  and  promulgated  for  the  Dutch 
nation.  I  have  given  it  rather  at  length,  that  the  reader  may  be  in 
possession  of  the  principal  branches  of  so  important  and  interest- 
ing a  document. 


of  the  state,  to  all  whom  these  presents  shall  come,  sends  greeting.  Be 
it  known  to  all,  that  we  have  accepted,  and  do  accept,  with  the  approba- 
tion of  his  majesty  the  Emperor  Napoleon,  our  august  brother,  the  dignity 
of  King  of  Holland,  conformably  to  the  wishes  of  the  country,  the  consti- 
tutional laws,  and  to  the  treaty  which,  being  protected  by  reciprocal 
ratifications,  has  been  this  day  presented  to  us  by  the  deputies  of  the 
Dutch  nation.  Upon  our  accession  to  the  throne,  our  dearest  care  shall  be 
to  watch  pver  the  interests  of  our  people.  We  will  always  study  to  give 
them  constant  and  multiplied  proofs  of  our  love  and  solicitude  (supporting 
for  those  ends)  the  liberty  of  all  our  subjects,  as  well  as  their  rights,  and 
in  employing  ourselves  incessantly  for  their  welfare.  The  independence  of 
the  kingdom  is  guaranteed  by  his  majesty  the  emperor  and  king.  The 
constitutional  laws,  and  our  firm  and  resolute  good  will,  equally  secure  to 
every  one  his  credit  with  the  state,  his  personal  liberty,  and  the  liberty 
of  conscience.  It  is  after  this  declaration  that  we  have  decreed,  and  do 
decree,  by  these  presents,  as  follows: 

Art.  1.  Our  ministers  of  marine  and  of  finance,  nominated  by  our 
decree  of  this  day,  shall  enter  immediately  upon  their  office:  the  other- 
ministers  shall  continue  in  theirs  till  further  orders. 

2.  All  the  constituted  authorities,  either  civil  or  military,  shall  conti- 
nue their  functions  until  further,  or  other,  orders. 

3.  The  constitutional  laws  of  the  state,  and  the  treaty  concluded  at 
Paris  the  24th  of  May,  in  the  present  year,  between  his  majesty  the  cm- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  81 

peror  and  king",  and  the  Batavian  Republic,  the  purport  of  which  is  here- 
in-aftermentioned,  shall  be  published  immediately,  as  well  as  the  present 
decree,  in  the  most  authentic  manner. 

We  therefore  order,  that  these  presents  be  published  and  posted  up 
in  all  places  where  it  is  usual  so  to  do;  and  enjoin  all  those  whom  it  may 
concern,  to  provide  for  the  exact  performance  of  every  thing  contained  in 
these  presents. 

Given  at  Paris,  the  5th  of  June,  1806,  in  the  first  year  of  our  reign. 
(Signed)  Louis. 

(Underneath  was  written)  on  behalf  of  the  king, 
For  the  Secretary  of  State.         (Signed)  Verhuel, 

The  Minister  of  the  Marine. 

THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  LAWS. 

First  Section.  General  Dispositions. 

Art.  1.  The  constitutional  laws  actually  in  force,  particularly  the 
constitution  of  1805,  as  well  as  the  civil,  political,  and  religious  laws  now 
exercised  in  the  Batavian  republic,  the  operation  of  which  is  conformable 
to  the  dispositions  of  the  treaty  concluded  the  24th  of  May,  in  the  present 
year,  between  his  majesty  the  emperor  of  the  French  and  king  of  Italy, 
and  the  Batavian  republic,  shall  be  wholly  preserved,  excepting  only 
those  which  shall  be  abolished  by  the  present  constitutional  laws. 

2.  The  administration  of  the  Dutch  colonies  is  regulated  by  particular 
laws.  The  revenues  and  the  expenses  of  the  colonies  shall  be  considered 
as  making  part  of  the  revenues  and  expenses  of  the  state. 

3.  The  public  debt  of  the  state  is  guaranteed  by  the  present  articles. 

4.  The  Dutch  language  shall  continue  to  be  employed  exclusively  for 
the  laws,  publications,  ordinances,  judgments,  and  all  other  public  acts, 
without  distinction. 

5.  There  shall  be  ao  change  made  in  the  name  or  weight  of  the  cur- 
rent coin,  but  by  virtue  of  a  particular  law. 

6.  The  ancient  flag  of  the  state  shall  be  preserved. 

7.  The  council  of  state  shall  be  composed  of  thirteen  members.  Tile 
ministers  shall  have  rank,  a  seat,  and  a  vote  in  the  council  of  state. 

Section  II.  Of  Religion. 
Art.  I.  The  king  and  the  lain  grant  an  equal  protection  to  all  religions  pro- 
fessed in  the  state.  By  their  authority  is  to  be  determined  all  that  is 
judged  necessary  in  the  organization,  the  protection,  and  exercise  of  all 
worships.  Every  exercise  of  religion  is  confined  to  the  interior  of  the 
temples  of  all  the  different  communions. 

2.  The  king  is  to  enjoy  in  his  palace,  as  well  as  in  every  place  where 
lie  shall  reside,  the  free  and  public  exercise  of  his  religion. 

Section  III.  Of  the  King. 
Art.  1.  The  King  has  exclusively,  and  without  restriction,  the  entire 
exercise  of  the  government,  an$  of  every  necessary  power  to  insure  the 


82  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

execution  of  the  laws,  and  to  make  them  respected.  He  appoints  to  all 
the  offices,  and  to  all  the  civil  and  military  employments,  which,  accor- 
ding to  the  preceding-  laws,  were  at  the  nomination  of  the  grand  pen- 
sionary. He  has  the  entire  enjoyment  of  the  pre-eminences  and  preroga- 
tives hitherto  attached  to  that  dignity.  The  coins  of  the  state  shall  be 
stamped  with  his  head.  Justice  is  to  be  administered  in  his  name.  He  is 
to  have  the  right  of  granting  pardon,  abolition  or  remission  of  penalties 
inflicted  by  sentence  of  law :  nevertheless,  he  cannot  exercise  this  right 
without  having  heard  in  private  council  the  members  of  the  national 
court. 

2.  At  the  death  of  the  king  the  guardianship  of  the  minor  king  shall 
be  always  confided  to  the  queen-mother ;  and  in  case  there  shall  be  no 
queen  mother,  to  such  person  as  shall  be  appointed  by  the  emperor  of 
the  French. 

3.  The  regent  shall  be  assisted  by  a  national  council,  whose  compo- 
sition and  privileges  shall  be  determined  by  a  particular  law.  The  regent 
shall  not  be  personally  responsible  for  the  acts  of  his  government. 

4.  The  government  of  the  colonies,  and  all  that  relates  to  their  inter 
rial  administration,  belongs  exclusively  to  the  king. 

5.  The  general  administration  of  the  kingdom  is  confided  to  the  im- 
mediate direction  of  four  ministers  of  state,  named  by  the  king,  viz.  a 
minister  for  foreign  affairs,  a  minister  of  war  and  of  marine,  a  minister  oi" 
finance,  and  a  minister  for  the  home  department. 

Section  IV.  Of  the  Law. 
Art.  1.  The  laws  of  Holland  being  made  by  the  concurrence  of  the 
legislative  body,  formed  of  the  assembly  of  their  high  mightinesses  and 
of  the  king;  the  legislative  body  shall  be  composed  of  thirty-nine  mem  • 
bers,  elected  for  five  years,  and  named  in  the  following  proportions,  viz. 
for  the  department  of  Holland,  seventeen  members,  for  that  of  Guelder- 
1  and,  four ;  for  that  of  Brabant,  four;  for  that  of  Friezeland,  four;  for 
that  of  Overyssel,  three;  for  that  of  Zealand,  two  ;  for  that  of  Groningen, 
two;  for  that  of  Utrecht,  two;  for  the  country  of  Drcnthe,  one.  The 
number  of  the  members  of  their  high  mightinesses  may  be  augmented 
by  the  law,  in  case  of  the  aggrandizement  of  territory. 

2.  For  this  time,  in  order  to  proceed  to  the  nomination  of  the  nineteen 
members  of  their  high  mightinesses,  by  whom  the  number  determined  in 
the  preceding  article  will  be  completed,  the  assembly  of  their  high 
mightinesses  shall  present  to  the  king  a  list  of  two  candidates  to  fill  each 
of  the  places.  The  departmental  assembly  of  each  department  shall 
equally  propose  a  double  list  of  candidates.  The  king  will  make  the  elec- 
tion among  the  proposed  candidates. 

3.  The  grand  pensionary  for  the  time  being  shall  take  the  title  of 
president  of  their  high  mightinesses,  and  shall  remain  in  office  in  this 
character  during  his  life.  The  choice  of  his  successors  shall  take  place 
in  the  manner  determined  by  the  constitution  of  1805. 

4.  The  legislative  body  shall  elect  from  itself  a  notary  by  a  majority 
Of  votes 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.        83 

3.  The  legislative  body  shall  re-assemble  as  usual  twice  a  year,  viz. 
from  the  15th  of  April  to  the  1st  of  June,  and  from  the  15th  of  November 
to  the  15th  of  January.  An  extraordinary  convocation  may  be  made  by 
;he  king  on  the  15th  of  November  in  every  year;  the  oldest  fifth  of  the 
members  forming  the  legislative  body  shall  retire  from  the  same.  The 
first  going  out  shall  take  place  the  15th  of  November  1807 ;  and  for  this 
time  the  persons  going  out  shall  be  determined  by  lot.  The  members 
who  go  out  shall  be  always  re -eligible. 

Section  V.  Of  the  Judiciary  Power. 

Art.  1.  The  judiciary  institutions  shall  be  preserved  as  they  were 
established  by  the  constitution  of  the  year  1805. 

2.  The  king  shall  exercise  (relative  to  the  judiciary  power)  all  the 
rights  and  all  the  authority  which  have  been  attributed  to  the  grand  pen- 
sionary by  the  articles  49,  51,  56,  79,  82,  and  87,  of  the  constitution  of 
the  year  1805. 

3.  All  that  relates  to  the  military  criminal  justice  shall  be  separately 
regulated  by  a  further  law. 

Treaty  concluded  between  his  Majesty  the  Emperor  of  the  French  and 
»   King  of  Italy,  and  the  Assembly  of  their  High  Mightinesses  repre- 
senting the  Batavian  Republic. 

His  imperial  and  royal  Majesty  Napoleon,  emperor  of  the  French  and 
king  of  Italy,  and  the  assembly  of  their  high  mightinesses  representing 
the  Batavian  republic,  president,  his  excellency  the  grand  pensionary, 
accompanied  by  the  council  of  state  and  the  ministers  and  secretary  of 
state. 

In  consideration,  1.  That,  seeing  the  general  disposition  of  minds,  and 
the  actual  organization  of  Europe,  a  government  without  consistency,  and 
without  a  certain  duration,  cannot  fulfil  the  end  of  its  institution. 

2.  That  the  periodical  renewal  of  the  chief  of  the  state  will  always  in 
Holland  be  a  source  of  dissensions,  and  out  of  it,  a  constant  subject  of 
agitation  and  discord  between  the  powers  either  friends  or  enemies  of 
Holland. 

3.  That  an  hereditary  government  alone  can  guarantee  the  quiet  pos- 
session of  all  that  is  dear  to  the  Dutch  people,  the  free  exercise  of  their 
religion,  the  preservation  of  their  laws,  their  political  independence,  and 
their  civil  liberty. 

4.  That  their  greatest  interest  is  to  secure  to  themselves  a  powerful 
protection,  under  whose  shelter  they  may  freely  exercise  their  industry, 
and  maintain  themselves  in  the  possession  of  their  territory,  their  com- 
merce, and  their  colonies. 

5.  That  France  is  essentially  interested  in  the  happiness  of  the  Dutch 
people,  in  the  prosperity  of  their  state,  and  the  stability  of  their  institu- 
tions, as  much  in  consideration  of  the  northern  frontiers  of  the  empire, 
which  are  open  and  unprovided  with  fortified  places,  as  of  the  principles 


84  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

and  interests  of  general  policy,  have  named  for  plenipotentiary  minister*, 
viz.  his  majesty  the  Emperor  of  the  French  and  King  of  Italy,  M.  C.  M, 
Talleyrand,  grand  chamberlain,  minister  of  foreign  affairs,  great  cordon 
of  the*  legion  of  honour,  knight  of  the  orders  of  the  red  and  black  eagle 
of  Prussia,  and  of  the  order  of  St.  Hubert,  &c;  and  the  Grand  Pensionary, 
M.  M.  C.  H.  Verhuel,  vice  admiral,  minister  of  the  marine  of  the  Bata- 
vian  republic,  decorated  with  the  great  eagle  of  the  legion  of  honour  ;  J. 
J.  A.  Gogel,  minister  of  finance;  S.  Van  Styrum,  member  of  the  assembly 
of  their  high  mightinesses;  William  Six,  member  of  the  council  of 
state;  and  G.  de  Brantzen,  plenipotentiary  minister  of  the  Batavian  re- 
public, by  his  imperial  and  royal  majesty  decorated  with  the  grand  eagle 
of  the  legion  of  honour,  who,  after  having  exchanged  their  full  powers, 
have  agreed  upon  as  follows. 

Art.  1.  His  majesty  the  emperor  of  the  French  and  king  of  Italy,  as 
Well  for  himself,  his  heirs  and  successors  for  ever,  guarantees  to  Holland 
the  maintenance  of  its  constitutional  rights,  its  independence,  the  en- 
tirety of  its  possessions  in  the  two  hemispheres,  its  political,  civil,  and 
religious  liberty,  as  it  is  consecrated  by  the  actual  established  laws,  and 
the  abolition  of  all  privileges  in  matters  of  taxes. 

2.  Upon  the  formal  demand  of  their  high  mightinesses,  representing 
the  Batavian  republic,  that  the  Prince  Louis  Napoleon  be  named  and 
crowned  hereditary  and  constitutional  king  of  Holland,  his  majesty,  with 
deference  to  this  desire,  authorises  the  Prince  Louis  Napoleon  to  accept 
the  crown  of  Holland  to  be  possessed  by  him  and  his  natural  and  legiti- 
mate male  descendants,  according  to  priority  of  birth,  to  the  perpetual  ex- 
clusion of  females  and  their  descendants.  In  consequence  of  this  authority, 
Prince  Louis  Napoleon  shall  possess  this  crown  under  the  title  of  King, 
and  with  all  the  power  and  all  the  authority,  which  shall  be  determined  by 
the  constitutional  laws  that  the  Emperor  Napoleon  has  provided  in  the 
preceding  article;  nevertheless,  it  is  enacted  that  the  crowns  of  France  and 
Holland  can  never  be  re-united  on  the  same  head. 

3.  The  domain  of  the  crown  comprehends,  1.  a  palace  at  the  Hague, 
which  is  to  be  destined  for  the  residence  of  the  royal  household;  2.  the 
palace  of  the  Wood,-  3.  the  domain  of  Soestdyk  ;  4.  a  revenue  in  landed 
property  of  500,000  florins.  The  law  of  the  state  furthur  assures  to  the 
king  an  annual  sum  of  1,500,000  florins  of  Dutch  money,  payable  by 
twelve  monthly  instalments. 

4.  In  case  of  a  minority,  the  regency  shall  belong  of  right  to  the 
queen  ;  and  in  case  there  shall  be  no  queen,  the  French  emperor,  in  his 
capacity  of  perpetual  chief  of  the  imperial  family,  is  to  name  the  regent 
of  the  kingdom.  He  is  to  choose  among  the  princes  of  the  royal  family, 
a/id  in  default  of  them,  among  the  nation.  The  minority  of  the  king  is  to 
end  at  the  age  of  eighteen. 

5.  The  jointure  of  the  queen  shall  be  determined  by  her  marriage  con- 
tract ;  for  this  time  it  is  settled  that  the  jointure  is  fixed  at  the  annual 
sum  of  250,000  florins,  which  shall  be  taken  from  the  domain  of  the 
crown      This  sum  deducted,  the  half  of  the  remainder  of  the  revenues  of 

i 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND,  85 

tiie  crown  will  serve  for  the  expenses  of  the  maintenance  of  the  houso 
of  the  minor  king,  the  other  half  shall  be  appropriated  to  the  expenses  of 
the  regency. 

6.  The  king  of  Holland  shall  be  for  ever  grand  dignitary  of  the  empire, 
under  the  title  of  constable ;  the  functions  of  this  grand  dignitary  raaj, 
nevertheless,  be  filled  at  the  will  of  the  emperor  of  the  French,  by  a 
prince  vice-constable,  when  he  shall  judge  proper  to  create  this  dignity. 
7.  The  members  of  the  reigning  house  of  Holland  shall  remain  person- 
ally subject  to  the  dispositions  of  the  30th  of  last  March,  forming  the  law 
of  the  imperial  family  of  France.  « 

8.  The  offices  and  employments  of  the  state,  exclusive  of  those  appertainhg 
to  the  house  of  the  king,  can  only  be  conferred  on  natives. 

9.  The  arms  of  the  king  shall  be  the  ancient  arms  of  Holland  quartered, 
with  the  imperial  eagle  of  France,  and  surmounted  with  the  royal  crown. 

10.  There  shall  be  forthwith  concluded  between  the  contracting  power?, 
a  treaty  of  commerce,  by  virtue  of  which  the  subjects  of  Holland  will  te. 
treated  at  all  times  in  the  ports,  and  on  the  territory  of  the  French  em- 
pire, as  the  nation  especially  favored.  His  majesty  the  emperor  and  king,, 
further  engages  to  intercede  with  the  powers  of  Barbary,  that  the  Dutch 
flag  may  be  respected  by  them,  as  well  as  that  of  his  majesty  the  emperor 
of  the  French.  The  ratifications  of  the  present  treaty  shall  be  exchanged 
at  Paris  in  the  space  of  ten  days. 

(Signed)  Ch.  M.  Talleyrand. 

Ch.  Henki  Verhuel. 
J.  J.  A.  Gogel,  Jean  Van  SxYRUk", 
W.  Six,  et  Brantzen. 
Paris,  this  24th  May,  1806. 

The  20th  of  June,  1806,  his  majesty  the  king  of  Holland  made  a  pro- 
posal to  their  high  mightinesses,  concerning  the  oaths  to  be  pronounced 
by  the  king  and  by  the  public  officers,  as  also  of  the  publication  of  tie 
laws :  their  high  mightinesses  approved  the  same  day  the  law,  which  is 
to  the  following  purport: 

Of  Oaths. 

Art.  1.  Immediately  after  the  proclamation,  the  king  will  receive  tie 
oath  of  their  high  mightinesses,  of  the  ministers  the  counsellors  of  the 
state,  of  the  high  court  of  justice,  of  the  great  and  other  officers  of  ths 
palace,  of  the  national  chamber  of  accounts,  of  the  presidents,  of  the  at- 
torney general,  of  the  courts  of  justice,  of  officers  of  the  land  and  sea;  to 
the  rank  of  lieutenant-colonel  and  captain;  lieutenant  inclusively. 

2.  In  the  course  of  this  year,  the  king,  accompanied  by  his  ministers, 
the  great  officers,  and  the  officers  of  the  palace,  will  take  the  oath  to  the 
Dutch  nation,  in  the  presence  of  their  high  mightinesses,  the  council 
of  the  state,  of  the  high  court  of  justice,  of  the  national  chamber  of  ac- 
counts, of  the  high  military  court,  of  the  council  of  taxes  and  prizes  by 
sea  and  land,  of  the  presidents  of  the  departmental  administrations,  and 
of  the  presidents  of  the  tribunals.  The  secretary  of  state  to  commit  to 


86  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

-writing  the  verbal  process  of  taking  the  oath.  The  oath  of  the  king  is  con- 
ceived in  these  terms : 

"  I  swear  to  maintain  the  constitutional  laws  of  the  kingdom,  to  de- 
'•  fend  the  integrity  of  the  territory  of  the  kingdom,  to  respect  the  liber- 
ty of  worships,  to  respect  and  to  cause  to  be  respected  the  equality  of 
"rights,  as  well  as  the  civil,  and  political  liberty :  not  to  raise  any  taxes, 
"  and  to  order  no  impositions  but  by  virtue  of  the  law:  to  have  no  other 
"  end  in  my  reign  than  the  sole  interests,  the  prosperity,  and  the  glory  of 
*'  the  Dutch  nation." 

3.  The  oath  that  is  made  to  the  king  is  conceived  in  these  terms: 
"  I  swear  obedience  to  the  constitutional  laws  of  the  kingdom,  and 
"  fidelity  to  the  king." 

Of  the  Publication. 

Art.  1.  The  king  will  seal  and  publish  all  the  laws. 

2.  Two  copies  are  to  be  made  of  each  law,  both  to  be  signed  by  the 
king,  countersigned  by  the  secretary  of  state  and  one  of  the  ministers, 
and  sealed  with  the  great  seal. 

3.  One  of  the  copies  is  to  be  deposited  among  the  archives  of  the  se- 
aetary  of  state,  and  the  other  among  the  archives  of  their  high  mighti- 
nesses. 

4.  The  publication  shall  be  conceived  in  these  terms,  &c. 

The  minister  of  the  home  department  has  the  care  of  the  publication. 

5.  Judgments  shall  be  pronounced,  and  the  execution  of  them  follows 
immediately. 

The  court  shall  execute  its  judgments  in  the  name  of  the  king.  All 
cilril  and  military  authorities,  legally  required  for  the  purpose,  are  bound 
to  vender  their  assistance. 

Royal  Decree  of  the  25th  of  June,  1806,  creating  general  directors  for 
the  different  departments  of  the  public  administration. 

Louis  Napoleon,  &c.  considering,  that  the  affairs  of  the  colonies  are 
administered  by  two  councils,  who  have  neither  strength  nor  unity  suffi- 
cient to  act  to  the  advantage  of  the  interests  of  the  kingdom  ;  and  that 
nevertheless  this  important  branch  of  the  administration  of  the  affairs  of 
lire  kingdom  merits  all  our  solicitude:  considering,  that  the  ministry  of 
rearine  is  of  too  high  a  nature,  and  that  the  objects  which  relate  to  it  are 
too  multiplied  and  too  abstract  to  be  united  with  that  of  the  war  depart- 
ment: considering,  that  the  minister  for  the  home  department  is  suffi- 
ciently occupied  by  the  inspection  of  administration,  and  the  inspection 
of  the  waters;  by  the  cares  of  promoting  the  advancement  of  agriculture; 
of  the  public  safety  and  instruction ;  and,  indeed,  of  the  arts  and  sciences, 
we  have  decreed  as  follows: 

Art.  1.  There  shall  be  three  general  directors,  who  shall  follow  im- 
mediately in  rank  the  ministers,  and  shall  be  employed  directly  with  us, 
viz.  The  director  general  of  the  war  department;  the  director  general  of 
the  affairs  of  India  and  of  commerce;  the  director-general  of  affairs  rela- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  87 

tive  to  public  worship  and  justice,  and  at  the  same  time  charged  with  the 
care  of  all  that  regards  the  safety  of  the  kingdom 

2.  They  shall  enjoy  the  honours,  rank,  and  treatment  of  ministers. 

3.  Our  ministers  are  respectively  charged,  as  far  as  they  are  concern- 
ed, with  the  execution  of  the  present  decree. 

Royal  Decree  of  the  1st  of  July,  1806,  containing  the  Organization  and 
the  Attributes  of  the  Council  of  State. 

Louis  Napoleon,  &c.  considering,  that  the  council  of  state  is  charged 
with  high  and  important  functions;  that  all  the  laws,  and  almost  all  the 
acts  of  administration,  ought  to  be  prepared  and  discussed  there  :  consi- 
dering, that  amongst  these  acts  there  are  many  of  great  importance  for 
the  interests  and  security  of  the  different  departments,  and  which  require 
the  local  knowledge  of  each  country,  its  situation  and  particular  customs: 
considering,  that  there  are  laws  and  acts  of  government  of  such  impor- 
tance, that  they  require  the  united  talents  and  zeal  of  all  the  citizens  who 
have  experience  thereon,  have  decreed,  and  do  decree  as  follows: 

Art.  1.  That  the  council  of  state  shall  be  composed  of  thirteen  mem- 
bers residing  near  us. 

2.  That  it  shall  be  formed  in  a  general  assembly,  and  divided  into 
sections. 

3.  That  the  general  assembly  shall  be  convoked,  and  presided  over 
by  the  king. 

4.  That  the  ministers  shall  have  rank,  a  seat,  and  a  deliberative  voice 
in  the  council  of  state. 

5.  That  there  shall  be  five  divisions  of  the*  council  of  state,  each  of 
which  shall  have  its  president. 

6.  These  divisions  shall  be  as  follows  :  the  division  of  legislation  and 
of  general  affairs,  comprehending  the  affairs  of  administration,  and  all 
that  has  not  a  reference  to  the  other  divisions;  the  division  of  marine; 
of  finances;  of  commerce  and  the  colonies;  the  division  of  war.  The 
president  and  the  members  of  the  divisions  or  sections  shall  be  appointed 
by  us  every  three  months.  Each  section  shall  have  a  superior  clerk  at- 
tached to  it. 

7-  The  title,  rank,  and  honours  of  the  counsellors  of  state  shall  be 
granted  either  to  the  public  officers  or  to  the  members  of  the  different 
authorities,  or  to  the  citizens  most  distinguished  by  their  talents  and 
probity.  They  shall  not  be  annexed  to  the  divisions  of  the  council  of  state 
until  they  have  been  called  by  us  to  the  council. 

8.  There  shall  always  be  a  counsellor  of  state  of  each  of  the  eight  great 
departments  for  the  legislation  and  general  affairs,  another  for  financial 
affairs,  and  another  for  the  affairs  relative  to  commerce  and  the  colonies ; 
and  this  in  order  that  we  may  be  well  assured  that  the  laws,  or  very  im- 
portant acts  of  government,  shall  not  be  prepared  and  discussed  without 
having  taken  into  consideration  the  situation  and  interests  of  each  of  the 
eight  grand  departments. 

9.  These  counsellors  of  state  shall  have  no  other  provision  than  for 
such  duty  as  they  shall  be  otherwise  called  upon  to  exercise.  They  shall 


88  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

have  no  right  to  come  to  the  council  unless  called  thither  by  us.  The 
counsellors  extraordinary  of  state,  who  might  be  nominated  members  of 
the  assembly  of  their  high  mightinesses,  shall  not  be  assembled  at  the 
council  of  state  so  long  as  they  shall  exercise  that  dignity. 

10.  On  the  first  of  January  every  year  we  will  determine  the  list  of 
the  thirteen  resident  counsellors  of  state,  and  of  the  presidents,  in  order 
to  call  to  a  residence  near  us  those  who  might  be  in  the  departments. 

11.  The  resident  counsellors  who  shall  be  preserved  on  the  list  will 
occupy  in  the  departments  the  places  to  which  they  shall  be  or  might  have 
been  called. 

12.  There  shall  be  a  secretary  general  of  the  council  of  state,  having 
under  him  the  offices  necessary  for  the  dispatch  of  business. 

13.  There  shall  be  near  our  council  of  state,  Auditors,  of  whom  we 
shall  determine  the  number  and  the  distribution  They  shall  be  chosen 
from  amongst  those  young  men  who  are  destined  for  the  administration, 
who  have  finished  their  studies,  and  who  have  distinguished  themselves 
therein.  There  shall  be  two  classes,  the  first  composed  of  young  people 
who  shall  have  shewn  in  the  exercise  of  their  functions  more  capacity, 
discretion,  and  attachment  to  their  duty :  they  shall  take  the  name  of  au- 
ditors of  the  king,  and  the  others  merely  the  name  of  auditors.  They  shall 
be  employed  to  prepare  business,  according  to  the  orders  they  shall  re- 
ceive from  the  presidents  of  the  sections  of  the  council  of  state  :  they  shall 
have  no  communication  with  the  ministers  unless  by  a  formal  order  from 
us.  The  auditors  of  the  king  shall  assist  at  the  general  sittings  of  the 
state  when  they  are  called  there  by  us.  In  that  case  they  shall  rank  be- 
hind the  counsellors  of  state,  and  shall  have  no  voice  in  council,  unless 
we,  from  a  wish  to  assure  ourselves  whether  they  improve  in  the  transac- 
tion of  affairs,  in  qualifying  themselves  for  the  administration,  shall  ask 
their  advice :  the  other  auditors  shall  only  be  employeoUHfthe  interior  of 
the  divisions. 

14.  As  the  institution  of  auditors  is  intended  to  initiate  young  men  in 
business,  and  to  facilitate  the  means  of  succeeding  in  it,  they  will  receive 
no  provision. 

Royal  Decree  of  the  9th  July,  1806,  relative  to  the  Presentation  of  the 
projected  Laws  of  their  High  Mightinesses. 

Art.  1.  When  the  plan  of  a  law,  (the  council  of  state  having  been 
heard")  shall  have  been  adopted  by  us,  the  secretary  of  state  shall  summon, 
by  a  letter,  the  president  of  the  legislative  body,  at  least  two  days  before- 
hand, to  assemble  the  orators  of  the  government  at  such  a  day  and  such 
an  hour,  at  the  assembly  of  their  high  mightinesses,  to  present  to  them 
one  or  several  projects  of  law ;  if  there  are  many,  the  number  shall  be  in- 
dicated. 

2.  The  secretary  of  state  shall  inform  the  same  day  the  secretary  gene- 
ral of  the  council  of  state  that  such  project  of  law  has  been  adopted  by  his 
majesty;  he  will  transmit  to  him  at  the  same  time  a  decree,  signifying", 
1st,  the  nomination  of  auditors  ;  2d,  the  day  of  presentation,         * 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  89 

3.  On  the  day  appointed  for  the  presentation  at  the  latest,  the  general 
secretary  of  the  council  of  state  shall  transmit  to  the  person  first  named 
in  the  decree,  and  who  is  to  be  the  speaker,  1st,  a  copy  of  the  same  decree 
by  which  their  powers  are  constituted;  2d,  two  copies  of  the  law. 

6th.  The  orators  of  the  government  shall  repair  to  the  assembly  of 
their  high  mightinesses,  in  the  carriages  of  government,  preceded  by  two 
tipstaff's  and  accompanied  by  two  of  the  royal  horse-guards.  The  guards 
before  whom  they  pass  will  draw  up,  and  present  their  arms:  at  the  pa- 
lace, where  the  sittings  of  the  assembly  of  their  high  mightinesses  are 
held,  they  are  to  be  received  in  a  private  room  by  the  committee  of  that  as- 
sembly, then  at  the  door  of  the  chamber  of  sittings  by  the  notary,  who 
shall  introduce  them  to  the  place  of  the  sittings  of  the  assembly,  and  ac- 
company them  to  the  place  destined  for  them,  and  which  is  similiar  to 
that  of  the  members  of  the  assembly.  The  orator  of  the  government  first 
named  in  the  decree,  shall  ask  the  president  for  leave  to  speak,  and  read, 
first,  the  royal  decree  and  the  project  of  the  law,  and  secondly  the  ex- 
position of  the  motives.  This  address  finished,  the  president  shall  re- 
turn the  act  to  the  orators,  and  a  copy  signed,  which  they  are  to  report, 
and  the  orators  will  retire  with  the  same  ceremony  with  which  they 
arrived. 

As  the  7th  article  of  the  treaty  signed  at  Paris  the  24th  of  May,  1806, 
ordains  that  the  members  of  the  reigning  house  of  Holland  shall  remain 
personally  subject  to  the  dispositions  of  the  30th  of  last  March,  forming 
the  law  of  the  imperial  family  of  France,  it  cannot  but  be  agreeable  to 
find  here  the  most  important  articles  to  which  his  majesty  the  King  of 
Holland  is  subjected,  and  which  are  most  adapted  to  him:  they  are  as 
follows : 

Title  1st.  Of  the  Princes  and  Princesses  of  the  Imperial  House. 

Art.  1.  The  emperor  is  the  chief  and  common  father  of  his  family; 
under  these  titles  he  exercises  paternal  authority  over  those  who  compose 
it,  during  their  minority;  and  preserves  always,  in  respect  to  them,  a 
power  of  inspection,  of  police,  and  of  discipline,  the  principal  objects  of 
which  will  be  determined  hereafter. 

3.  The  imperial  house  is  composed,  first,  of  the  princes  comprised  in 
the  hereditary  order  established  by  the  act  of  the  constitutions  of  the 
28th  May,  12th  year,  concerning  their  marriage,  and  their  descendants 
in  legitimate  marriage :  2d.  of  the  princesses  our  sisters,  of  their  husbands, 
and  of  their  descendants  in  legitimate  marriage,  to  the  fifth  degree  inclu- 
sively: 3dly.  of  our  children  by  adoption,  and  of  their  legitimate  de- 
scendants. 

Title  III.  Of  the  Education  of  the  Princes  and  Princesses  of  the  Im- 
perial House. 
26.  The  emperor  regulates  all  that  concerns  the  issue  of  the  princes 
and  princesses  of  this  house:  he  nominates  and  revokes  at  will  those  who 
are  commissioned  with  it,  and  determines  the  place  where  it  is  to  be 
effected. 

M 


t(6  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

27-  All  the  princes  born  in  hereditary  order  will  be  brought  up  toge- 
ther, and  by  the  same  tutors  and  officers,  either  in  the  palace  inhabited 
by  the  emperor,  or  in  another  palace  within  the  distance  of  ten  myriame- 
tres*  from  his  usual  residence. 

26.  Their  course  of  education  will  begin  at  the  age  of  seven,  and  will 
finish  at  the  attainment  of  the  age  of  sixteen.  The  children  of  those  who 
have  distinguished  themselves  by  their  services  may  be  admitted  to  par- 
ticipate of  the  advantages. 

27.  Should  it  happen  that  a  prince  in  the  hereditary  order  should  as- 
cend a  foreign  throne,  he  will  be  bound,  when  his  male  issue  should  be 
seven  years  old,  to  send  them  to  the  above-mentioned  houses  to  receive 
their  education. 

Of  the  Presentation  of  Petitions  and  Audiences. 

Those  who  wish  to  present  petitions,  or  addresses,  &c.  to  the  king, 
Will  put  at  the  head,  "  To  the  King."  They  all  begin  with  the  title  of 
Sire,  and  in  the  body  of  the  addresses,  &c.  the  words  "  Your  Majesty" 
must  be  used.  His  majesty  has  provisionally  charged  the  counsellor  of 
state,  M.  Golberg,  in  order  to  receive  in  his  name  all  the  requests,  sup- 
plications, and  remonstrances  which  may  be  presented,  and  to  give  a  cir- 
cumstantial account  of  them  to  the  King.  This  counsellor  attends  for  this 
purpose  in  the  apartments  of  the  old  court,  every  Tuesday  and  Friday, 
from  nine  in  the  morning  till  two  in  the  afternoon.  But  all  petitions,  sup- 
plications, or  remonstrances,  must  be  presented  in  writing,  on  stamped 
paper:  and  there  ought  besides  to  be  indorsed  on  the  petitions,  Sec.  the 
name  of  the  supplicant,  the  nature  of  the  demand,  and  in  concise  terms, 
the  motives  of  the  same.  It  must  be  observed  besides,  that  all  demands, 
addresses,  or  remonstrances  to  the  courts,  or  tribunals  of  justice,  depart- 
mental administrations,  or  other  constituted  authorities,  ought  to  be  sent 
to  the  minister  or  directors  general,  that  the  deed  which  relates  to  the 
object,  be  made  by  them,  and  presented  to  the  king.  Those  who  desire 
to  be  admitted  to  the  audience  of  his  majesty  the  king,  are  obliged  to  ad- 
dress themselves  for  this  purpose  to  the  chamberlain  of  the  day,  the  mo- 
tive for  which  this  audience  is  requested,  must  be  signified  by  writing, 
and  the  place  where  the  answer  may  be  sent  exactly  mentioned.  The 
king  has  decreed,  that  in  order  to  facilitate  and  assure  as  much  as  possi- 
ble the  relation  between  him  and  his  subjects,  all  the  ministers,  or  directors 
general,  have  to  give  once  or  twice  a  week  a  public  audience ;  for  this 
purpose  they  have  fixed  the  following  days,  &c.  &c. 

The  leading  features  in  this  constitution,  are  the  guarantee  of 
the  payment  of  the  national  debt;  the  free  and  unqualified  exercise 
of  religion ;  the  predominant  authority  vested  in  the  king ;  the  esta- 

*  Myriametre  is  equal  to  5132  43-100  toises,  or  1  7-20  German  miles, 
15  to  a  degree. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  91 

blishment  of  the  salique  law,  for  ever  excluding  females  from  the 
throne;  the  declaration  that  the  minority  of  any  future  king  shall  ex- 
pire upon  his  attaining  his  eighteenth  year;  that  only  natives  shall  be 
eligible  to  any  offices  under  the  state,  exclusive  of  those  immediately 
appertaining  to  the  king's  household ;  that  the  yearly  revenue  of  the 
king  shall  be  two  millions  of  florins,  and  that  the  royal  residences 
shall  be  the  palaces  of  the  Hague,  in  the  Wood,  and  at  Soestdyke; 
As  a  few  months  have  only  rolled  away  since  the  promulga- 
tion of  this  constitution,  it  would  be  somewhat  hasty  to  offer  any 
objections  to  it :  it  must  be  left  to  time  to  ascertain  how  far  it  is 
adapted  to  the  genius  and  resources,  and  propitious  to  the  pros- 
perity of  the  people. 


92  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

GRAND  ENTRY  OF  KING  AND  QUEEN  INTO  HOLLAND. ...OPENING 
OF  THE  MEETING  OF  THEIR  HIGH  MIGHTINESSES.. ..ANECDOTE 
OF  ROYAL  ECONOMY. ...THE  HAGUE  DESCRIBED. ...LADY  W.  MON- 

TAGU's    REMARKS    REBUTTED PRETTY    FEMALE    FACES A 

DUTCH     NURSERY DUTCH     MODE     OF     INCREASING     ANIMAL 

HEAT. ...THE  WOOD ITS  SANCTITY THE  PALACE  FORMERLY 

CALLED  THE  HOUSE  IN  THE  WOOD.... ANECDOTE  OF  KING  WIL- 
LIAM THE  THIRD. ...UNOSTENTATIOUS  HABITS  OF  THE  ORANGE 
FAMILY... .CHARMING  JAUNT  TO  SCHEVELING....A  MARINE  HO- 
TEL....MR.  FOX. 

SOON  after  the  promulgation  of  the  constitution,  the  King 
and  Queen  set  off  from  Paris  to  take  possession  of  their  new  king- 
dom, and  on  the  23d  of  June  following  made  their  solemn  entry 
into  the  Hague:  they  left  the  palace  in  the  Wood  in  the  following 
order;  a  herald  at  arms,  his  majesty's  horse  guards,  the  guard  of 
honour,  the  council  of  state  in  three  coaches,  the  admirals  in  one 
coach,  the  ministers  in  two  coaches,  the  great  officers  of  the  crown 
in  one  coach,  their  majesties  in  one  coach,  the  generals  in  two 
coaches:  the  ladies  and  officers  of  the  royal  household  in  one  coach, 
followed  by  aids-de-camp  and  other  officers,  and  the  whole  pro- 
cession closed  by  detachments  of  hussars  and  dragoons. 

When  the  procession  reached  the  palace  of  their  high  mighti- 
nesses, their  majesties  were  received  at  the  door  by  four  deputies 
from  the  assembly.  They  ascended  the  great  staircase,  passed 
through  the  chamber  of  the  national  library,  and  were  received  at 
the  door  of  the  anti-chamber  by  the  president  of  their  high  mighti- 
nesses, and  two  other  deputies.  Having  entered  the  hall  of  the 
assembly,  her  majesty  was  conducted  to  her  tribune  by  two  depu- 
ties. The  king  seated  himself  on  his  throne,  and  put  on  his  hat.  On 
the  right  side,  and  behind  his  majesty,  sa*t*the  grand  chamberlain, 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  y3 

and  the  aid-de-camp  general;  on  the  left,  the  master  of  the  horse, 
and  the  grand  master  of  the  civil  list.  All  the  other  officers  of  state 
were  ranged  in  proper  situations.  The  members  of  the  assembly 
stood  up  in  their  places  uncovered  on  the  entrance  of  the  king; 
but  when  his  majesty  covered  himself,  they  followed  his  example. 
The  president  placed  himself  in  his  chair,  directly  opposite  to  the 
king.  After  the  king  was  seated  on  his  throne,  he  directed  the  grand 
master  of  the  ceremonies  to  administer  the  oaths  of  allegiance  to 
their  high  mightinesses.  The  oaths  were  accordingly  first  taken  by 
the  president,  and  afterwards  by  the  other  members,  in  the  order  of 
their  seniority.  Each  member  approached  to  the  foot  of  the  throne, 
and  was  sworn  on  the  Holy  Evangelists.  When  all  the  members 
were  sworn,  his  majesty  delivered  the  following  speech  to  the 
assembly : 

"  Gentlemen, 

"  When  the  national  deputies  came  to  offer  me  the  throne  which  I 
ascend  this  day,  I  accepted  it,  under  the  conviction  that  it  was  the  wish 
of  the  whole  nation  ;  that  the  confidence  and  the  necessities  of  all  called 
me  to  it. 

"  Relying  on  the  intelligence,  zeal,  and  patriotism  of  the  principal 
public  functionaries,  and  particularly  on  yours,  gentlemen  the  deputies,  I 
have  fearlessly  weighed  in  my  mind  the  misfortunes  of  the  nation  in  their 
fullest  extent.  Animated  by  the  strongest  desire  to  promote  the  welfare 
of  this  good  people,  and  entertaining  a  hope  that  I  should  one  day  attain 
that  end,  I  stifled  those  sentiments  which,  till  then,  had  been  ever  the 
object  and  happiness  of  my  life.  I  have  consented  to  change  my  country, 
to  cease  to  be  solely  and  entirely  a  Frenchman,  after  having  passed  my 
whole  life  in  performing,  to  the  best  of  my  ability,  those  duties  which 
that  name  prescribes  to  all  who  have  the  honor  of  bearing  it. 

"  I  have  consented  to  separate  myself,  for  the  first  time,  from  him 
who,  from  my  infancy,  has  possessed  my  love  and  admiration:  to  lose  the 
repose  and  independence  which  those  whom  Heaven  calls  to  govern  can- 
not have:  to  quit  him,  the  separation  from  whom  would  fill  me  with  ap- 
prehension, even  in  the  most  tranquil  times,  and  whose  presence  precludes 
danger. 

"  I  have  consented  to  all  this,  and,  gentlemen,  had  I  not  done  so,  I 
would  nevertheless  yet  act  the  same  part,  now  that  by  the  ardour,  joy, 
and  confidence  of  the  people  through  whose  country  I  have  passed,  they 
have  proved  to  me,  that  you  were  the  true  interpreters  of  the  nation,  now 
especially,  when  I  am  convinced,  that  I  may  rely  on  your  zeal,  your  at- 
tachment to  the  interests  of  your  native  land,  and  on  your  confidence  in, 
and  fidelity,  towards  me. 


94  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

"  Gentlemen,  this  is  the  first  day  of  the  real  independence  of  the 
United  Provinces.  A  transient  glance  at  past  ages  is  sufficient  to  con- 
vince us,  that  they  never  had  a  stable  government,  a  fixed  destiny,  a  real 
independence.  Under  that  famous  people,  whom  they  fought  and  served 
by  turns,  as  under  the  Franks  and  the  Empire  of  the  West,  they  were 
neither  free  nor  tranquil. 

"  Neither  were  they  so  afterwards,  when  subjected  to  Spain. 

"  Their  wars,  and  their  repeated  quarrels  until  the  union,  added  to 
the  glory  of  the  nation,  confirmed  its  qualities  in  point  of  frankness,  in- 
trepidity, and  honor,  for  which,  indeed,  it  had  been  always  celebrated;  but 
its  efforts  procured  it  neither  tranquillity  nor  independence,  even  under 
the  Princes  of  Orange,  who,  though  they  were  useful  to  their  country,  as 
soldiers  and  statesmen,  were  always  disturbing  it,  by  pretending,  or  en- 
deavouring to  obtain  a  power  which  the  nation  denied  them. 

"  Nor  could  Holland  be  considered  in  that  state  in  later  times,  when 
the  elevation  of  ideas,  and  the  general  agitation  of  Europe,  so  long  sus- 
pended the  repose  of  nations. 

"  After  so  many  vicissitudes,  so  much  agitation,  so  many  calamities  ; 
and  at  a  time  when  the  great  states  were  enlarging  themselves,  ameliora- 
ting and  concentrating  their  governments  and  their  forces,  this  country 
could  enjoy  no  real  safety  nor  independence,  but  in  a  moderate  monar- 
chical state  ;  a  form  which  had  been  acknowledged  during  a  long  period, 
and  by  each  nation,  in  its  turn,  as  the  most  perfect,  and  if  not  absolutely 
so,  yet  as  much  so  as  the  nature  of  man  will  admit.  But,  doubtless,  if 
perfection  were  the  lot  of  humanity,  we  might  then  dispense  with  a  go- 
vernment of  this  kind.  Laws  would  then  be  founded  in  wisdom,  and 
obeyed  without  reluctance  or  obstacle;  virtue  would  reign  triumphant, 
and  insure  its  own  reward ;  vice  would  be  banished,  and  wickedness  ren- 
dered impotent;  but  illusions  which  favour  such  romantic  ideas  of  human 
nature,  are  transient;  and  experience  soon  brings  us  back  to  positive 
facts. 

"  However,  even  monarchy  itself  is  not  sufficient  for  a  country,  which, 
though  powerful  and  important,  is  not  sufficiently  so  for  its  position, 
which  requires  forces  of  the  first  rank  both  by  land  and  sea.  It  will,  there- 
fore, be  necessary  for  it  to  form  a  connexion  with  one  of  the  great  powers 
of  Europe,  with  which  its  amity  may  be  eternally  assured,  without  any 
alteration  of  its  independence. 

"  This,  gentlemen,  is  what  your  nation  has  done;  this  is  the  object  of 
its  constitutional  laws,  and  also  that  of  my  taking  upon  me  an  employment 
so  glorious;  this  is  my  object  in  my  placing  myself  in  the  midst  of  a 
people,  who  are,  and  ever  shall  be  mine,  by  my  affection  and  solicitudc. 
With  pride  I  perceive  two  of  the  principal  means  of  government  and 
confidence  offering  themselves  to  me;  the  honour  and  the  virtue  of  the 
inhabitants. 

'*  Yes,  gentleman,  these  shall  be  real  supporters  of  the  throne;  I  wish 
for  no  other  guides.  For  my  part,  /  biow  no  distinctions  of  religion  or  party i 
distinctions  can  only  arise  from  merit  and  services.  My  design  is  only  to  re 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND,  S5 

anedy  the  evils  which  the  country  has  suffered.  The  duration  of  these 
evils,  and  the  difficulty  of  remedying  th^m,  will  only  increase  and  realize 
my  glory. 

"  To  effect  these  objects,  I  have  occasion  for  the  entire  confidence  of 
the  nation,  their  complete  devotion,  and  all  the  talents  of  the  distinguished* 
men  whom  it  contains,  but  particularly  of  you,  gentlemen,  whose  zeal, 
talents,  and  patriotism,  are  well  known. 

"  I  am  at  this  moment  appealing  to  the  good  and  faithful  Hollanders, 
before  the  deputies  of  the  provinces  and  principal  cities  of  the  kingdom. 
I  see  them  around  me  with  pleasure.  Let  them  bear  to  their  fellow-citizens 
the  assurance  of  my  solicitude  and  affection :  let  them  carry  the  same 
testimony  of  these  sentiments  to  Amsterdam  ;  that  city,  which  is  the  ho- 
nour of  commerce,  and  of  the  country:  that  city,  which  I  wish  to  call  my 
good  and  faithful  capital,  though  the  Hague  will  always  remain  the  resi- 
dence of  the  sovereign.  Let  them  also  carry  the  same  assurances  to  their 
fellow-citizens,  and  the  deputies  of  that  neighbouring  city,  the  prosperity 
of  which  I  hope  very  soon  to  renew,  and  whose  inhabitants  I  distinguish. 

"  It  is  by  these  sentiments,  gentlemen ;  it  is  by  the  union  of  all  orders 
of  people  in  the  state,  and  by  that  of  my  subjects  among  themselves;  it  is 
by  the  devotion  of  each  individual  to  his  duties,  the  only  basis  of  real 
honour  assigned  to  men;  but  principally  by  the  unanimity  which  has  hi- 
therto preserved  these  provinces  from  all  dangers  and  calamities,  and 
which  has  ever  been  their  shield,  that  I  eipect  the  tranquillity,  safety, 
and  glory  of  the  nation,  and  the  happiness  of  my  life." 

The  king  has  given  general  satisfaction  by  the  choice  he  has 
made  of  the  persons  he  has  nominated  to  fill  the  public  offices ; 
and  if  the  wishes  of  one  who  trespassed  a  little  irregularly  upon 
their  shores  can  avail,  the  brave,  frugal,  and  indefatigable  Hollan- 
ders will  derive  happiness,  and,  when  peace  is  restored  to  Europe, 
prosperity  under  their  new  government. 

The  revenue  attached  to  the  stadtholderate  was  nominally  1 8,000/. 
per  annum ;  but  by  the  great  patronage  and  influence  belonging 
to  it,  no  doubt  it  must  have  been  considerably  augmented,  as  also 
by  the  revenues  arising  from  other  hereditary  territories  of  the 
siadtholders ;  but  after  all,  the  income  of  the  stadtholderate  was 
scarcely  sufficient  to  support  the  dignity  of  the  situation,  powerful 
and  important  as  it  at  last  became.  The  king,  in  addition  to  his 
revenue,  has  an  enormous  private  fortune:  the  savings  which  he 
has  effected  in  the  state  reconcile  the  Dutch  to  this  liberal,  but 
perhaps  not  excessive  allowance  made  for  the  support  of  his  dig- 
nity. 


96  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

How  the  Hague  could  be  called  a  village,  in  all  its  meridian 
splendor,  is  a  matter  of  surprise :  it  derived  its  name  from  s'Craven- 
hage,  or  the  Count's  Wood,  on  account  of  a  wood  which  formerly 
grew  here,  and  which  formed,  some  centuries  since,  a  part  of  the 
domains  of  the  Counts  of  Holland.  The  following  anecdote  will 
show  the  simplicitly  which  reigned  in  this  great  and  beautiful  city 
in  former  times*  When  Louisa  de  Coligni  was  coming  to  be  mar- 
ried to  Prince  William  at  the  Hague,  the  Dutch  sent  an  open 
post-waggon  to  meet  her,  and  she  entered  the  city  seated  on  a 
plank:  towards  the  latter  end  of  Prince  Maurice's  days,  and  during 
Frederic-Henry's  lifetime,  the  Hague  became  a  very  agreeable 
place,  and  the  resort  of  people  of  the  first  distinction. 

In  my  rambles  round  this  city,  I  was  much  impressed  with 
the  elegance  and  spaciousness  of  the  buildings;  every  object 
seemed  to  have  partaken  of  the  spirit  and  magnificence  of  a  court. 
But  there  was  a  solemnity  in  the  splendor.  It  reminded  one  of 
looking  into  a  magnificent  ball-room  after  the  greater  part  of  the 
company  had  departed,  and  the  lustres  were  dying  away.  If  the 
Orange  family  had  been  entitled  to  sympathy,  the  scene  would  have 
led  me  to  feel  and  think  for  them.  Its  noble  buildings,  its  spacious 
streets,  gracefully  built,  shaded  with  trees,  and  divided  by  canals, 
the  variety  of  surrounding  scenery,  its  proximity  to  the  sea,  its 
elevated  situation,  and  the  purity  of  its  air,  render  the  Hague  the 
most  charming  town  in  Holland.  The  first  place  I  visited  was  the 
palace  of  the  last  of  the  stadtholders.-  It  is  a  vast  pile  of  houses, 
many  of  them  somewhat  ancient,  surrounded  by  a  canal,  without 
which  and  a  pipe,  paradise  itself  would  have  no  charms  for  a 
Dutchman:  over  the  canal  are  several  drawbridges;  and  the  whole 
has  a  very  pleasing  effect  seen  from  the  spot  where  I  took  the 
view  of  it.  On  one  side  of  a  quadrangle  is  part  of  a  new  palace, 
built  by  the  late  stadtholder,  and  which,  had  it  been  finished,  would 
have  been  handsome  and  princely;  but  the  troubles  in  Holland  have 
prevented  its  completion. 

In  part  of  this  building  there  is  a  noble  gothic  hall,  much  re- 
sembling Westminster-Hall,  and  very  large;  on  each  side  little 
shops  were  arranged,  similar  to  those  in  Exeter  'Change:  it  is  con- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.        97 

verting  into  a  chapel  for  the  king.  There  were  here  formerly  the 
prince's  cabinet  of  natural  history  and  museum  of  rarities*  consist- 
ing of  a  tolerable  collection  of  shells,  petrefactions,  precious  stones, 
fossils,  minerals,  and  birds.  This  collection  has  been  removed  to 
Paris,  although,  from  all  I  could  learn,  scarcely  worthy  of  so  much 
trouble:  it,  however,  furnished  the  first  elements  of  knowledge  to 
Camper,  one  of  the  most  profound  geniuses  which  the  United 
Provinces  ever  produced,  and  also  Professor  Pallas,  who  has  been 
called  the  Pliny  of  Russia.  The  French  offered  to  re-sell  this  cabi- 
net to  the  Dutch  government,  who  declined  becoming  the  purcha- 
sers; a  tolerable  proof  of  its  inferiority.  The  prince's  cabinet  of 
pictures  was  very  select  and  valuable,  and  was  enriched  by  the 
productions  of  Titian,  Holbein,  Rembrandt,  Vandyk,  Gerard  Dow, 
Metzio,  Polemburgh,  and  other  illustrious  artists.  On  the  confis- 
cation of  the  property  of  the  exiled  Stadtholder,  the  Dutch  go- 
vernment, for  the  purpose  of  promoting  the  polite  arts,  formed 
this  collection  of  pictures,  esteemed  $>ne  of  the  most  valuable  in 
Europe,  into  a  national  gallery,  set  apart  an  annual  sum  for  the- 
augmentation  of  it,  and  deposited  it  in  a  fine  suite  of  apartments 
in  the  House  in  the  Wood,  where  a  director  of  ability,  and  assis- 
tants, were  appointed  to  superintend  it:  but  the  French  soon  af- 
terwards transferred  the  best  of  them  to  that  magnificent  depot  of 
the  fruits  of  conquest,  the  Louvre  at  Paris.  The  first  person  sent 
by  Napoleon  to  select  for  his  gallery  was  unequal  to  his  office,  and 
left  some  excellent  works  behind  him,  which,  upon  "  a  second 
shaking  of  the  tree"   by   another  and  more  able  inspector,  were 
collected,  and  sent  off  to  that  colossal  collector  of  works  of  art. 
Amongst  several  landscapes  by  Vernet  was  the  finest  he  ever 
painted,  the  subject,  the  waterfall  of  Tivoli.  It  is  a  curious  circum- 
stance that  there  is  not  one  fine  private  collection  at  the  Hague. 

I  was  much  delighted  with  the  Voorhout,  considered  the  princi- 
pal street,  in  which  are  many  elegant  and  classical  buildings, forming 
complete  contrasts  to  the  leaning,  mercantile  structures  of  Rotter- 
dam. In  this  street  the  most  elegant  houses  are  those  which  formerly 
belonged  to  the  Prince  Wielburgh,  who  married  the  last  Prince  of 

Orange's  sister,  and  to  the  French  ambassaaor,  formerly  occupied 

N 


98  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

by  the  British  minister:  but  the  most  beautiful  part  of  the  Hague 
is  the  Vyverburg;  it  is  a  vast  oblong  square,  adorned  with  a  noble 
walk  or  mall,  strowed  with  broken  shells,  and  shaded  by  avenues 
of  trees  on  one  side,  and  on  the  other  by  the  palace,  and  a  large 
basin  of  water  called  the  Vyver,  almost  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in 
length,  variegated  by  an  island  of  poplars  in  its  centre.  This  mall 
is  the  place  of  fashionable  resort,  and,  on  the  evening  of  the  day  I 
saw  it,  was  adorned  with  several  groups  of  lovely  women  attired 
in  the  French  fashion,  which  generally  prevails  amongst  the  gen- 
teel families  in  Holland.  Besides  these  there  are  many  other  very 
noble  ones,  and  all  remarkably  clean,  but  the  canals  are  almost  all 
of  them  green  and  stagnant,  and  at  this  season  emitted  an  unplea- 
sant effluvia.  Here,  as  in  many  cities  in  France,  the  armorial  ensigns 
of  distinguished  families,  which  used  to  dignify  the  front  of  their 
dwellings,  have  been  cut  away,  and  many  a  shield  remains  des- 
poiled of  its  quarterings.  Some  of  them,  since  the  new  order  of 
things  has  occurred,  have  betn  restored.  In  a  square  planted  on  all 
sides  with  trees  the  parade  is  held. 

As  Lady  Wortley  Montagu,  in  her  accustomed  sprightliness 
of  style,  has  mentioned  with  some  appearance  of  disgust,  the  white 
fishy  faces  of  the  Dutch  women,  I  beg  to  observe,  that  at  the 
Ha^ue  I  saw  several  very  pretty  females:  in  general  they  posses- 
sed transparent  delicacy  of  countenance,  but  as  generally  wanted 
expression.  An  English  gentleman  who  had  just  returned  from 
Italy,  where  he  had  been  accustomed  for  several  years  to  the  warm 
voluptuous  brunettes  of  that  beautiful  country,  was  uncommonly 
delighted  with  the  fair  faces  of  the  Dutch  ladies;  but  female  beauty 
does  not  begin  to  expand  itself  till  after  the  imprisonment  and 
regimen  of  the  nursery  are  past  Pretty  and  healthy  children  are 
rarely  iO  be  seen  in  Holland :  in  general  they  look  pale  and  squalid, 
Owing  to  an  abominable  system  followed  in  rearing  them ;  they 
are  accostomed  for  the  first  two  or  three  months  to  respire  the 
atmosphere  of  a  room,  the  windows  of  which  are  never  opened 
to  leceive  the  freshness  of  the  morning  pjr;  to  wash  them  with 
refreshing  cold  water  would  be  c<  '.  ascertain  infanticide; 

the  miserable  infant  is  swathed  round  with  flannel  rollers,  until  it 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.        gg 

becomes  as  motionless  as  a  mummy  ;  and  over  these  ligatures  there 
is  always  a  vast  flannel  wrapper  folded  three  or  four  times  round  the 
body,  and  fastened  at  the  bottom  of  its  feet :  afterwards,  for  many 
months  it  is  loaded  with  woollen  garments,  and  when  at  length  it  is 
permitted  to  try  for  what  purpose  legs  were  originally  constructed;, 
it  is  cased  in  an  additional  wrapping  of  flannel,  to  prevent  the  dreaded 
consequences  of  freely  inhaling  the  salubrious  air. 

As  it  was  summer,  I  can  only  speak  from  information  of  an 
equally  vile  and  destructive  custom,  which  obtains  in  the  winter, 
of  suffering  the  children  to  sit  over  the  chauffepies  or  stoves, 
which  frequently  supplants  the  ruddy  tints  of  health  by  a  white 
parboiled  appearance.  I  saw  several  of  these  chaufTepies,  from 
which  the  little  pots  that  in  coid  weather  contain  the  burning  turf, 
had  been  withdrawn,  used  by  the  ladies  as  footstools.  Whilst  the 
men  warm  themselves  with  the  smoke  of  tobacco  from  above,  the 
ladies,  to  recompense  themselves  for  not  using  that  indulgence, 
take  care  to  fumigate  themselves  below,  by  placing,  in  the  proper 
season,  these  ignited  stoves  under  their  petticoats,  and  resemble 
the  glow-worm,  which  carries  his  fire  in  his  tail:  the  cats  and 
kittens,  from  the  genial  warmth  of  the  climate,  arc  glad  to  take 
shelter  in  this  warm  mysterious  sanctuary.  The  ladies  and  the 
lower  classes  of  females  are  always  remarkably  neat  about  the 
feet ;  the  petticoats  of  the  latter  are  in  general  very  short,  display 
a  well-proportioned  leg,  clean  blue  stockings,  and  a  slipper  without 
any  heel-piece,  or  sabot. 

In  my  way  to  the  palace  in  the  Wood,  near  this  square,  I 
passed  by  a  vast  triumphal  arch  made  of  wood,  painted  to  imitate 
stone,  and  adorned  with  a  number  of  complimentary  inscriptions 
in  Latin,  in  honour  of  the  king  and  queen,  who  passed  through  it 
on  the  23d  of  June  last,  when  they  made  their  public  entry;  and 
in  a  vast  field  adjoining  to  the  wood  was  a  lofty  temporary  obelisk 
of  the  same  materials,  which  formed  one  of  the  principal  objects 
of  a  magnificent  fete  recently  given  by  the  French  commander  in 
chief  in  honour  of  their  majesties,  which  was  conducted  in  the 
highest  style  of  Parisian  taste.  The  day  when  I  visited  the  wood 
was  remarkably  fine ;  this  spot,  so  dear  to  the  Dutch,  is  nearly  two 


100  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

English  miles  long,  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  broad,  and  con- 
tains a  fine  display  of  magnificent  oaks  growing  in  native  luxuriance. 
Antony  Waterloo  made  the  greatest  part  of  his  studies  from  this 
spot  and  its  environs.  The  ground  upon  which  it  grows,  and  the 
country  about  it,  undulate  a  little,  a  circumstance  of  agreeable  no- 
velty, and  the  whole  is  a  truly  delightful  walk,  more  romantic  and 
umbrageous  than  our  mall  of  St.  James's,  and  surpassed  only  by 
the  garden  of  the  Thuilleries.  This  wood  has  been  held  sacred  with 
more  than  pagan  piety.  War  and  national  want,  that  seldom  spare 
in  their  progress,  committed  no  violations  here.  Although  the  fa- 
vourite place  of  royal  recreation,  yet,  in  the  fury  of  the  revolution, 
not  a  leaf  trembled  but  in  the  wind.  Philip  II.  in  the  great  war  with 
Spain,  issued  his  mandate  for  preserving  it :  hostile  armies  have 
marched  through  it  without  offering  it  a  wound,  and  the  axe  of 
the  woodman  has  never  resounded  in  it.  Even  children  are  taught 
or  whipt  into  veneration  for  it,  so  that  their  mischievous  hands 
never  strip  it  of  a  bough.  Once,  however,  it  is  recorded,  that  at  a 
period  of  great  state  necessity,  in  1576,  their  high  mightinesses 
sat  in  judgment  upon  its  noble  growth,  and  doomed  it  to  fall :  the 
moment  their  decree  was  known,  the  citizens  flew  to  the  meeting, 
remonstrated  with  a  degree  of  feeling  which  did  honour  to  their 
taste;  and  upon  learning  that  the  object  of  its  doom  was  to  raise 
a  certain  sum  to  assist  in  replenishing  the  nearly  exhausted  coffers 
of  the  republic,  they  immediately  entered  into  a  contribution,  and 
presented  the  amount  to  the  u  high  and  mighty  masters"  of  the 
sacred  grove. 

It  has  been  asserted  by  some  travellers,  that  the  Dutch  treasure 
this  spot  more  from  national  pride  than  feeling,  and  that  they  are 
more  disposed  to  preserve  than  to  ei.joy  it.  To  this  remark  I  have 
only  to  offer,  that  I  saw  a  considerable  number  of  equestrian  and 
pedestrian  groups,  who  appeared  to  relish  its  shaded  roads,  and 
sequestered  walks  with  great  delight.  The  royal  residence  is  to  the 
right  at  the  end  of  the  wood.  Upon  my  asking  a  Dutchman  which 
path  led  to  the  u  house  in  the  wood,"  the  only  appellation  by  which, 
in  the  time  of  the  Stadtholder,  it  was  known,  he  sharply  replied, 
«  I  presume  you  mean  the  palace  in  the  wood."    This  building  is 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  1Q1 

merely  fit  for  the  residence  of  a  country  gentleman,  and  has  no- 
thing princely  about  it,  except  the  centry  boxes  at  the  foot  of  the 
flight  of  stairs  ascending  to  the  grand  entrance:  two  tall  and  not 
very  perpendicular  poles,  from  the  tops  of  which  is  stretched  a 
cord,  suspending  in  the  centre  a  large  lamp,  stand  on  each  side  of 
the  house  in  front  of  the  palace ;  on  the  left  are  the  coach-houses 
and  stablings,  which  are  perfectly  plain,  and  are  just  separated 
from  the  court  road  by  a  small  stunted  plantation .  there  was  a 
very  handsome  carriage  of  the  king's  in  the  coach-house,  without 
arms  or  cyphers,  of  a  pale  blue  colour,  which,  with  silver  lace,  is 
the  colour  of  the  new  royal  livery.  The  carriage  had  every  ap- 
pearance of  having  been  built  in  England.  Excepting  this,  I 
never  before  saw  a  carriage,  unless  appropriated  for  state  oc- 
casions, belonging  to  any  crowned  head  on  the  continent,  that 
an  Englishman  of  taste  and  opulence  would  be  satisfied  with. 
Even  the  carriages  of  Napoleon,  built  in  a  city  so  celebrated 
for  its  taste  in  design,  and  beauty  of  workmanship,  as  Paris,  are 
clumsy  and  unpleasant  to  the  eye.  Although  it  was  Sunday,  the 
sound  of  workmen,  actively  engaged  in  modernizing  the  palace 
after  the  Parisian  taste,  issued  from  almost  every  window.  Some 
Dutchmen  who  were  contemplating  the  front  of  the  house,  shook 
their  heads  at  this  encroachment  of  the  sabbath.  In  consequence 
of  the  internal  arrangement  not  being  finished,  strangers  were  not 
admitted.  The  walks  on  the  outside  of  the  gardens  are  formal  and 
insipid ;  the  gardens  themselves  are  handsomely  disposed,  and 
kept  in  great  order,  and  the  whole  of  the  premises  is  insuiated  by 
stagnant  canals  crossed  with  draw-bridges. 

In  this  palace,  amongst  many  other  precious  works  of  art, 
was  the  celebrated  picture  of  King  William  the  Third,  who  tip- 
pointed  the  famous  Godfrey  Scalken,  when  he  was  in  London,  to 
paint  his  portrait  by  candle-light:  the  painter  placed  a  taper  in 
the  hands  of  his  majesty,  to  hold  it  in  a  situation  most  favourable 
to  the  designs  of  the  artist,  during  which  the  tallow  melted  and 
dropped  on  the  fingers  of  the  monarch,  who  endured  it  with  great 
composure,  for  fear  of  embarrassing  the  painter,  who  very  tran- 
quilly continued  his  work,  without  offering  to  pause  for  a  minute: 


102  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

it  is  not  much  to  i  he  credit  of  the  prince  of  the  country  to  record, 
that  this  blunt  enthusiasm  for  his  art  lost  poor  Scalken  the  favour 
of  the  court,  and  of  persons  of  fashion,  and  he  retired  to  the  Hague, 
where  he  had  a  prodigious  demand  for  his  small  paintings. 

The  furniture  of  this,  which,  as  well  as  of  the  other  palaces, 
was  superb,  but  old  fashioned,  was  sold  by  the  French,  upon  the 
pretence  that  their  arms  were  directed  against  the  Prince  of 
Orange  personally.  In  this  palace  the  Stadtholder  and  his  family 
used  to  indulge  his  subjects  in  that  ridiculous  custom  of  eating 
before  them  on  certain  days;  a  custom  which  was  a  fit  appendage 
to  another,  that  of  keeping  dwarfs  and  fools  about  the  royal  per- 
son. How  this  stupid  usage  came  to  be  adopted  at  first  I  know  not, 
for  one  would  naturally  think  that  the  situation  least  calculated  to 
inspire  awe  and  veneration,  those  great  supports  of  royalty, 
amongst  subjects'towards  their  rulers,  would  be  that  in  which  a 
mere  animal  appetite  is  gratified.  In  England  such  splendid  folly 
has  been  ion;;;  discontinued. 

The  plain  manner  in  which  the  Prince  of  Orange  and  his 
family  resided  at  this  palace,  is  thus  described  by  the  late  ingeni- 
ous M'-  li-dand.  "  The  reception  we  met  with  as  strangers,  was 
higl  ^y  flattering.  It  was  the  character  of  Englishmen  that  was  our 
passport.  Expressing  our  wish  to  see  the  prince,  the  court  being 
then  full,  we  were  addressed  by  a  gentleman  (whom  we  after- 
wards found  to  be  Lord  Athione)  through  whose  politeness  we 
gained  admission,  and  were  with  great  affability  noticed  by  the 
prince.  He  is  short  in  stature,  with  much  elegance  and  familiarity 
in  his  manner,  not  unlike  our  royal  family.  The  princess  and  her 
daughter,  who  is  about  eighteen,  appeared  in  the  room:  their  dres- 
ses were  very  plain,  and  they  had  no  other  mark  of  superiority 
than  a  train-bearer.  So  little  ceremony  is  observed  in  the  exterior 
of  the  house,  that  just  without  the  door  of  the  apartment,  where 
the  prince  was  giving  audience  (which  was  open),  a  woman  was 
on  her  knees  scrubbing  the  staircase." 

Upon  my  return  to  my  hotel  at  one  o'clock,  the  dinner  hour, 
I  found  a  very  agreeable  party  composed  of  foreigners  from  dif- 
ferent countries,  and  an  excellent  table  d'hote:  over  the  chimney- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  103 

piece  was  a  good  equestrian  portrait  of  the  famous  Duke  of  Cum- 
berland, who  lodged  at  this  house  occasionally  during  the  cam- 
paigns of  1747.  After  dinner,  in  company  with  a  very  amiable 
gentleman-like  Englishman,  whom  I  met  at  the  table  d'hote,  I  set 
off  in  one  of  the  carriages,  many  of  which  are  always  ready  to  con- 
vey passengers,  for  about  the  value  of  sixpence  English,  for 
Scheveling,  a  village  which  every  traveller  should  visit,  on  account 
of  the  beauty  of  the  avenue  leading  to  it,  which  is  nearly  two  miles, 
perfectly  straight,  and  thickly  planted  with  beech,  iimes,  and  oaks; 
at  the  end  of  which  superb  vista  the  church  of  Scheveling  appears. 
On  the  sandy  ground  on  each  side  of  this  avenue  are  several  birch 
thickets,  and  it  abounds  with  the  aiera  canescens,  hippophae  rham- 
noides,  a  singular  dwarf  variety  of  ligustrum  vulgare  (Privet),  the 
true  arundo  epigejos  of  Linnzeus  (that  is,  calamagrostis),  und  a 
number  of  heath  plants,  mixed  with  others  usually  found  in 
marshes.  Scarcely  is  there  so  small  a  spot,  where  rlora  presents 
such  opposite  variety,  and  which  the  fluctuating  moisture  of  the  soil 
can  alone  account  for.  Among  the  rarer  species  are  convallaria 
multiilora,  and  polygonatum,  with  gentiana  cruciata,  which  is  not 
a  native  of  England. 

The  Dutch  value  this  beautiful  avenue  as  much  as  they  do 
their  Wood,  and  great  care  is  taken  to  preserve  it  from  violation. 
At  the  entrance,  in  a  most  romantic  spot,  is  the  turnpike-gater 
where  all  passengers,  except  the  fishermen  of  Scheveling,  pay  a 
fraction  of  a  farthing  for  permission  to  enter;  and  here  are  stuck 
up  orders,  threatening  with  punishment  those  who  may  attempt 
to  injure  in  the  smallest  degree  this  consecrated  forest.  At  short 
intervals,  cautionary  inscriptions  are  placed  in  conspicuous  situa- 
tions, to  warn  mischievous  "  apple  munching  urchins"  from  cut- 
ting the  smallest  twig. 

Constantine  Huygens,  brother  of  the  celebrated  mathematician 
and  mechanist  of  that  name,  had  the  honor  of  designing  this  ave- 
nue, in  which  there  are  many  stately  trees,  upwards  of  a  century 
and  a  half  old :  a  terrible  storm  which  took  place  a  few  years 
since,  laid  about  fifty  of  these  noble  objects  low,  to  the  great  grief 
and  consternation  of  the  country.  Here,  and  perhaps  here  only, 


104  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

throughout  Holland,  the  traveller  may  be  gratified  by  the  sounds 
of  a  running  brook.  The  foot  paths  on  each  side  were  crowded 
with  pedestrians  of  both  sexes,  in  their  holiday  clothes  ;  and  the 
slanting  rays  of  a  brilliant  sun  flashing  through  openings  in  the 
branches  oi  the  limes,  beech  trees,  and  oaks,  upon  a  crowd  of 
merry  faces,  jolting  in  the  most  whimsical  carts  and  waggons,  to 
their  favourite  spot  of  carousal,  had  a  very  pleasing  and  pictu- 
resque effect. 

The  village  is  very  neat  and  pretty;  at  the  end  of  the  vista, 
large  sand-hills  rising  near  the  base  of  the  church,  preclude  the 
sight  of  the  ocean,  which,  when  they  are  surmounted,  opens  upon 
the  view  with  uncommon  majesty.  The  beach,  which  we  saw  in 
high  perfection  on  account  of  its  being  low  water,  is  very  firm  to 
the  tread,  and  foi'ms  a  beautiful  walk  of  nearly  six  miles  in  extent. 
The  ocean  was  like  a  mirror,  and  fishing  vessels  were  reclining 
on  the  sand  in  the  most  picturesque  forms,  just  surrounded  with 
water:  their  owners,  with  their  wives  and  children,  were  parading 
up  and  down  in  their  sabbath  suits,  and  the  whole  sand  for  a  mile 
was  a  fine  marine  mall,  covered  with  groupes  who  appeared  as  ca- 
pable of  appreciating  the  beauty  of  the  scene,  as  the  worshippers 
of  the  Steyne  at  Brighton,  or  of  the  Parade  at  Bath.  The  Dutch 
are  said  to  have  an  antipathy  to  sea-air;  but  this  I  found  not  to  be 
generally  true:  certain  it  is,  that  they  are  not  fond  of  sea-bathing, 
otherwise  this  beach  would  be  crowded  with  bathing,  and  the 
country  above  it  with  lodging-houses. 

Water  is  no  novelty  to  a  Dutchman,  and  he  prefers,  and  there 
seems  some  sense  in  his  preference,  his  neat,  commodious  coun- 
try-house, and  his  gardens,  and  all  the  comforts  of  life  about  him, 
to  the  pleasure  of  bathing  and  contemplating  a  wasCe  of  waters 
from  the  windows' of  a  cheerless  inn  or  lodging-house.  An  English 
frigate,  which  lay  off  at  a  considerable  distance,  excited  a  good 
deal  of  attention,  and  added  to  the  beauty  of  the  scene.  Upon  quit- 
ting the  beach  we  entered  an  inn  which  overlooked  the  sand  and 
was  a  place  of  great  resort,  every  room  of  which  was  crowded  and 
filled  with  tobacco  smoke.  The  state  of  Mr.  Fox's  health  formed  the 
leading  feature  of  the  political  discourse.  "  Herr  Fock,"  as  he  was 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  105 

called,  was  frequently  repeated  at  every  table.  Opposite  to  where 
we  sat  a  young  Dutch  couple  were  making  violent  love;  they 
kissed,  devoured  dry  salted  fish,  and  drank  punch  with  an  enthu- 
siasm, which  presented  to  our  imagination  the  warmest  associa- 
tion of  Cupid  and  the  jolly  god.  John  Van  Goyen,  who  died  in 
1656,  and  was  so  justly  celebrated  for  the  transparency  of  his  co- 
louring of  water,  made  this  spot  the  frequent  subject  of  his  charm- 
ing pencil.  Dutch  tradition  dwells  with  delight  upon  a  cock  and  a 
bull  story  respecting  the  celebrated  flying  chariot  which  used  to 
sail  upon  those  lands}  and  on  the  surrounding  country.  It  was  said 
to  have  been  made  by  Stevinus,  for  Prince  Maurice :  it  is  thus 
described  and  commented  upon  in  a  curious  old  description  of 
Holland:  "  The  form  of  it  was  simple  and  plain:  it  resembled  a 
boat  moved  upon  four  wheels  of  an  equal  bigness,  had  two  sails, 
was  steered  by  a  rudder  placed  between  the  two  hindmost  wheels, 
and  was  stopt  either  by  letting  down  the  sails,  or  turning  it  from 
the  wind.  This  noble  machine  has  been  celebrated  by  many  great 
authors,  as  one  of  the  most  ingenious  inventions  later  ages  have 
produced.  Bishop  Wilkins,  in  his  Treatise  of  Mechanical  Motions, 
mentions  several  great  men  who  described  and  admired  it.  Grotius 
mentions  an  elegant  figure  of  it  in  copper,  done  by  Geyneus ;  and 
Herodius,  in  one  of  his  large  maps  of  Asia,  gives  another  sketch, 
of  the  like  chariots  used  in  China."  Incredible  as  this  story  ap- 
pears, one  would  be  disposed  to  think,  that  a  man  of  Grotius's 
celebrity  for  learning  and  truth,  would  scarcely  have  eulogized  the 
invention,  had  he  doubted  its  existence.  Upon  a  level,  hard,  straight 
road,  uninterrupted  by  trees  and  buildings,  such  a  piece  of  ingenui- 
ty might  perhaps  prove  successful  as  a  mechanical  experiment, 
but  utterly  impossible  ever  to  be  made  serviceable. 

O 


,106       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 


CHAPTER  X. 

HISTORICAL  ANECDOTE  OF  SCHEVELING.... ANECDOTE  OF  LORD- 
NELSON.. ..A  MARINE  SCENE. ...PASSION  OF  DUTCH  FOR  FLOWERS 
NOT  SUBSIDED.. ..VENERATION  OF  DUTCH  FOR  STORKS.. ..CAUSES 
OF  IT.. ..QUAILS  AND  SWANS... HUMOUROUS  BLUNDER  OF  A  DUTCH 

WAITER UNIVERSAL    INDUSTRY DOGS     AND    GOATS THE 

THEATRE THEATRICAL  ECONOMY PRODIGAL  PROCREA- 
TION  PRESENT  STATE  OF  THE  HAGUE STATE  OF  LITERA- 
TURE THERE... .BRIEF  ANECDOTE  OF  DANIEL  MYTENS....OF 
JOHN  HANNEMAN....OF  JOHN  LE  DUC,  OR  THE  BRAVE. 

THE  coast  of  Scheveling  is  considered  very  dangerous  in 
rough  weather :  the  spires  of  the  church  here,  and  those  of  Gra- 
vesande  and  Monster,  three  leagues  to  the  south,  serve  for  land- 
marks; yet,  owing  to  the  coast  of  the  province  of  Holland  lying  very 
low  and  flat,  they  are  scarcely  discernible  three  or  four  leagues  at 
sea:  for  want  of  sand-banks  to  break  the  force  of  the  sea,  the 
the  coast  is  much  exposed,  and  the  fishermen  are  obliged,  after 
their  return,  to  haul  their  vessels  on  rollers  up  the  beach  beyond 
the  water's  reach :  this  labour  must  be  very  great,  for  many  of 
them  are  from  twenty  to  thirty-five  tons  burthen. 

This  place  has  been  at  different  periods  subject  to  dreadful 
irruptions  of  the  sea,  particularly  in  the  year  1574,  when  it  broke 
in,  and  carried  away  121  houses:  Scheveling  has  its  portion  of 
historic  celebrity.  In  1650,  the  expatriated  Charles  II.  after  a  long 
exile,  embarked  from  this  place  for  Scotland,  to  which  he  was 
invited,  with  a  promise  of  assistance  in  recovering  the  rest  of  his 
dominions.  Clarendon,  in  his  History,  vol.  iii.  p.  287,  says,  the 
king  went  from  the  Hague  to  Scheveling,  where  "  the  States  oi 
Holland,  at  infinite  hazard  to  themselves  from  Cromwell  and  Eng- 
land, suffered  their  ship  to  transport  him.  They  gave  all  counte- 
nance to  the  Scotch  merchants  and  factors  who  lived  in  their  do- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  107 

minions,  and  some  credit,  that  they  might  send  arms  and  ammu- 
nition, and  whatsoever  else  was  necessary  for  the  king's  service, 
into  that  kingdom."  And  this  the  States  did  "  when  the  king  was 
at  his  lowest  ebb,  and  was  heartily  weary  of  being  in  a  place 
(Paris)  where  he  was  very  ill-treated,  and  lived  very  uncomfort- 
ably, and  from  whence  he  foresaw  he  should  soon  be  driven." 
Having  experienced  the  most  romantic  vicissitudes  after  his  escape 
from  Worcester,  this  monarch,  in  the  disguise  of  a  sailor,  escaped 
to  Dieppe  in  Normandy,  in  1651;  and  he  again,  in  1660,  embark- 
ed at  Scheveling  on  board  of  his  own  fleet,  which  was  waiting  to 
receive  him.  The  grateful  monarch  declared  war  against  his  Dutch 
friends  in  1672,  and  entered  into  a  private  league  with  the  French 
king  to  lay  waste  their  provinces  with  fire  and  sword.  From  this 
beach  too  the  Stadtholder,  his  son  the  hereditary  prince,  and  two 
or  three  Dutch  noblemen  attached  to  the  prostrate  fortunes  of  the 
house  of  Orange,  embarked  when  they  fled  to  England :  the  vessel 
they  sailed  in  was  a  small  fishing  cutter,  navigated  by  five  men; 
the  princesses  took  their  departure  in  a  similar  conveyance  the 
day  before. 

Another  interesting  event  also  is  recorded  as  having  occurred 
off  this  coast,  by  Bishop  Burnet,  who  in  the  History  of  his  Own 
Times  thus  relates  this  marvellous  circumstance :  "  There  was  one 
extraordinary  thing  happened  near  the  Hague  this  summer(  1 672); 
I  had  it  from  many  eye-witnesses,  and  no  doubt  was  made  of  the 
truth  of  it  by  any  at  the  Hague.  Soon  after  the  English  fleet  had 
refitted  themselves,  they  appeared  in  sight  of  Scheveling,  making 
up  to  the  shore.  The  tide  turned,  but  they  reckoned  that  with  the 
next  flood  they  could  certainly  land  the  forces  that  were  on  board, 
where  they  were  like  to  meet  with  no  resistance.  The  States  sent 
to  the  prince  for  some  regiments  to  hinder  the  descent.  He  could 
not  spare  many  men,  having  the  French  near  him;  so  between 
the  two,  the  country  was  given  up  for  lost  unless  De  Ruyter  should 
quickly  come  up.  The  flood  returned,  which  the  people  thought  was 
to  end  in  their  ruin;  but  to  all  their  amazement,  after  it  had  flowed 
two  or  three  hours,  an  ebb  of  many  hours  succeeded,  which  carried 
the  fleet  again  to  sea;  and  before  that  was  spent,  De  Ruyter  came 


108  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

in  view.  This  they  reckoned  a  miracle  wrought  for  their  preserva- 
tion." It  is  also  a  curious  circumstance  that  the  reverse  of  this  ex- 
traordinary effort  of  nature  enabled  the  immortal  Nelson  to  lay  his 
fleet  so  as  to  bear  upon  the  batteries  by  which  the  capital  of  Den- 
mark was  protected.  The  tide  had  never  been  known,  in  the  me- 
mory of  the  oldest  inhabitant  of  Copenhagen,  to  have  risen  so 
high  as  on  the  day  when  the  battle  first  commenced,  and  greatly 
contributed  to  his  success  in  persuading  the  gallant  Danes  that 
they  were  beaten. 

De  Ruyter,  the  Nelson  of  the  Dutch,  was  distinguished  for  the- 
boldness  of  his  designs  and  the  celerity  of  his  execution.  In  1653, 
with  Van  Tromp,  he  commanded  the  Dutch  fleet  against  this 
country  with  the  greatest  honour  to  his  flag.  The  Moors  present- 
ed him  with  a  Barbary  horse,  magnificently  caparisoned,  for  his 
gallantly  reaching  his  destined  port  in  the  Salee  roads,  and  for  cap- 
turing five  powerful  Algerine  corsairs.  The  celebrated  vice-admiral 
d'Estres  said  of  him  in  a  letter  to  Colbert,  on  account  of  his  noble 
conduct  in  those  hard -fought  engagements  between  the  English, 
Dutch,  and  French  fleets  off  the  Texel,  "  I  should  be  very  willing 
to  purchase  with  my  life  the  glory  which  De  Ruyter  has  acquired 
in  these  desperate  actions." 

On  our  return  we  met  groups  of  little  girls,  whose  short  pet- 
ticoats, and  protuberances  on  all  sides,  looked  very  grotesque. 
Many  of  the  Dutch  girls  of  the  lower  order  wear  twenty  or  thirty 
yards  of  flannel  tied  round  their  hips.  In  the  village  is  a  pauper 
house  for  the  poor  and  aged,  founded  in  1614.  On  a  week  day,  the 
road  from  Scheveling  is  more  characteristically  gay,  being  covered 
with  fishwcmen  running  and  singing  to  the  Hague,  under  loads 
of  soles,  cod,  turbot,  &c.  to  which  place  I  returned,  highly  delight- 
ed with  my  excursion.  In  the  neighbourhood  of  that  city  are 
several  fine  flower-gardens.  The  passion  of  the  Dutch  for  flow- 
ers is  well  known.  M.  Dutens,  in  his  very  entertaining  and  in- 
teresting Memoirs  of  a  Traveller  in  Retirement,  says,  that  at 
the  kermes  or  fair  held  at  the  Hague  in  the  month  of  May,  "  1 
was  witness  to  a  circumstance  I  could  not  otherwise  have  believed, 
respecting  the  price  of  flowers  in  Holland ;  I  saw  four  hundred 
and  seventy-five  guineas  ottered  and  refused  for  a  hyacinth,  It  was 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.       1Q9 

to  be  sure  the  most  charming  flower  that  ever  was  seen:  it  belong- 
ed to  a  florist  at  Haerlem,  and  another  Jiorist  offered  this  price  for 
it.  The  reason  which  the  owner  gave  me  for  refusing  the  offer 
was,  that  his  hyacinth  was  known  to  all  the  amateurs  of  Europe, 
and  that  he  sold  the  bulbs  every  year  for  more  than  the  interest  of 
five  hundred  guineas.  These  bulbs  produced  the  same  sort  of 
flower  in  all  its  beauty."  This  singular  passion  has  not  subsided : 
at  Haerlem  fine  narcissuses  and  jonquils  sell  for  an  immense 
price,  and  parties  are  made  every  summer  to  visit  the  roses,  which 
grow  in  great  perfection  at  Noordwyk. 

Upon  our  return  to  the  Hague,  we  visited  a  palace  of  the  ci- 
devant  hereditary  Prince  of  Orange;  it  forms  three  sides  of  an 
oblong  square  towards  the  street;  it  was  converting  into  a  public 
office ;  behind  are  some  pretty  gardens,  one  of  which  is  less  for- 
mal than  Dutch  gardens  in  general.  I  concluded  the  day  by  walk- 
ing round  a  great  part  of  the  town,  the  whole  of  which  is  sur- 
rounded with  avenues  of  trees,  similiar  to,  but  not  so  fine  as  the 
boulevards  of  Rouen.  In  the  fish-market,  the  next  day,  I  saw 
several  storks,  who  were  parading  about  in  perfect  security,  of 
which  they  seemed  to  be  thoroughly  satisfied,  and  were  every  now 
and  then  regaled  by  the  offal  of  the  fish.  The  prejudices  of  the 
people  have  consecrated  these  birds,  on  account  of  their  being 
considered  as  the  gardes  du  corps  of  republican  liberty.  The 
Greeks  and  Roman:;  regarded  them  with  peculiar  veneration;  and 
in  Thessaly  the  destroyer  of  one  was  punished  with  exile.  No 
animal  but  this  discovers  any  token  of  fondness  for  the  authors  of 
its  existence  after  it  has  attained  strength  and  discrimination  suffi- 
cient to  provide  for  itself.  The  stork  is  well  known  to  evince  an 
exemplary  regard  for  its  aged  parents,  whom  it  defends  from  at- 
tack, and  furnishes  with  food ;  and  well  did  it  deserve  the  Roman 
appellation  of  "  pia  avis."  The  Dutch  frequently  erect  frames  of 
wood  upon  the  tops  of  their  houses  to  encourage  these  their  fa- 
vourite birds  to  build  their  nests  there.  Perhaps  another  reason 
why  these  birds  are  so  much  cherished  is  that  which  renders  them 
popular  in  Germany,  namely,  on  account  of  their  quick  percep- 
tion of  fire,  and  the  noise  they  make  when  it  takes  place.  If  the 


110  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

Dutch  really  believed  that  the  storks  could  exist  only  in  a  pure 
republic,  they  must  for  some  time  past  have  renounced  their  cre- 
dulity, for  these  birds  have  survived  the  visits  of  the  French,  and 
seem  to  have  no  objection  to  be  enrolled  amongst  the  subjects  of 
the  new  King.  It  is  said  that  they  assemble  at  certain  periods  and 
hold  consultations.  Certain  it  is  that  the  crows  in  England  fre- 
quently meet  with  all  the  appearance  of  a  deliberative  body.  A 
gentleman  of  distinguished  talents  and  veracity  assured  me,  that 
he  once  observed  a  vast  body  of  crows  assembled  near  his  country 
house,  that  after  making  a  great  deal  of  noise,  one  of  them  moved 
slowly  into  the  middle,  soon  after  which  the  rest  fell  upon  him  and 
pecked  him  to  death.  The  quails  are  another  species  of  privileged 
birds  in  Holland,  particularly  in  Guelderland,  where  they  are  pre- 
served with  superstitious  care  in  cages  suspended  on  the  outsides 
of  houses.  The  swan  too  is  much  venerated  here,  and  the  raven  is 
greatly  cherished  at  Nimeguen. 

The  traveller  will  be  well  remunerated  for  his  trouble  in  as- 
cending to  the  top  of  the  tower  of  St.  Jacques,  the  only  high  de- 
votional building  in  the  Hague,  except  the  new  church:  to  obtain 
permission  to  do  so,  it  is  necessary  to  apply  to  the  principal  ma- 
gistrate of  the  police,  the  reason  for  which  precaution  I  could  not 
learn.  The  view  from  this  elevation  is  exquisitely  beautiful ;  below, 
on  one  side  lay  expanded  the  square,  the  venerable  pile  of  the 
town  palace,  its  superb  basin,  the  noble  streets  leading  towards  the 
wood,  and  the  spires  of  distant  villages  fading  in  midst  of  the  hori- 
zon: whilst,  on  the  other  side,  stretched  the  avenues  of  Scheveling, 
terminated  by  the  blue  and  sparkling  ocean. 

A  whimsical  little  penalty  followed  this  gratification;  at  the  ho- 
tel where  I  resided,  a  Dutch  waiter  attended  me,  who  imposed 
upon  his  master  to  believe  that  he  spoke  English  very  fluently,  in 
consequence  of  which  he  was  selected  to  wait  upon  all  English  and 
American  visitors :  the  English  language  of  this  personage  was  a 
ridiculous  collection  of  the  heads,  legs,  wings,  and  tails  of  English 
words,  mingled  together  with  all  the  confusion  of  a  giblet-pye. 
Upon  my  expressing  to  this  flippant  gentleman  my  wish  to  as- 
cend the  tonvcr  of  the  church,  he  said,  interrupting  me,  "Oh,  dc 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLANd.  m 

roof,  de  roof."  I  acquiesced,  and  away  he  flew ;  about  an  hour  af- 
terwards he  returned  in  high  perspiration  with  a  billet,  which  in- 
stead of  proving  to  be  an  order  to  view  the  town  and  country  from, 
the  roof  of  the  tower,  was  an  acknowledgment  of  money  for  the 
ruif  of  the  treckschuyt  for  Leyden  the  day  following,,  viz.  the 
whole  of  the  cabin  which  he  had  engaged  and  paid  the  amount  of 
for  me. 

In  Holland,  that  bee-hive  of  industry,  every  available  source  of 
service  is  made  use  of,  so  that  dogs,  and  even  goats,  are  not  suf- 
fered to  pick  the  bone,  or  eat  the  bread  of  idleness.  Most  of  the 
little  wares  and  merchandizes,  and  particularly  fish,  are  drawn  by 
the  former,  who  are  properly  harnessed  for  the  occasion  to  little 
carts,  whilst  the  latter  are  yoked  to  infantine  waggons  and  curri- 
cles, to  air  and  exercise  little  children  in.  It  is  really  astonishing 
to  see  what  weight  these  animals  will  draw  after  them ;  nothing- 
can  exceed  their  docility,  and  for  their  labour,  the  Hollander,  who 
is  remarkable  for  his  humanity  to  the  dumb  creation,  feeds  them 
well,  and  lodges  them  in  his  house  very  comfortably.  Owing  to 
the  great  care  paid  to  their  dogs,  the  canine  madness  seldom  ap- 
pears amongst  them.  On  Sundays  they  are  permitted  to  refresh, 
and  enjoy  themselves,  and  never  show  any  disposition  to  escape 
from  their  lot  of  industry.  In  their  farms,  cows  and  oxen  are  al- 
ways used  in  draft,  and  display  every  appearance  of  receiving  the 
kindest  treatment  from  their  masters. 

The  theatre  at  the  Hague  is  tastefully  arranged,  and  supplied 
with  a  tolerable  set  of  French  comedians.  The  centre  box  is  ap- 
propriated for  the  royal  family,  and  is  elegantly  fitted  up.  Before 
the  conversion  of  the  republic  into  a  kingdom,  when  the  govern- 
ment resided  in  the  hands  of  the  Batavian  directory,  the  orna- 
ments of  the  box  which  was  allotted  to  them,  were  very  unworthy 
of  the  rank  of  the  personages  for  whose  accommodation  it  was 
reserved :  a  piece  of  paper,  on  which  was  written,  "  Le  loge  du 
directoire  Batave,"  and  pasted  on  the  box  door,  alone  announced  the 
dignity  of  its  destination.  The  usual  national  spirit  of  economy 
used  to  display  itself  in  the  Dutch  theatre,  where,  to  prevent  an 
useless  consumption  of  taHow,  whenever  the  musicians  quitted 


112  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

the  orchestra,  they  were  bound  by  contract  to  extinguish  the  lights 
by  which  they  read  their  music.  In  many  tradesmen's  houses  at 
this  day  in  Holland,  winter  courtships  are  carried  on  in  the  dark, 
the  union  of  warm  love  and  rigid  economy  being  considered  a  very 
laudable  conjunction. 

If  we  are  to  give  credit  to  the  ridiculous  story  which  is  still 
believed  at  a  village  called  Loosduynen,  about  three  miles  from 
the  Hague,  the  ladies  are  far  from  being  economical  in  breeding. 
A  Dutch  author  has  gone  so  far  as  to  declare,  that  he  had  seen  the 
three  hundred  and  sixty-five  children  of  the  Countess  of  Henes- 
berg,  and  with  pleasant  minuteness  describes  them  to  be  of  the 
size  of  shrimps,  and  Erasmus  believed  the  story.  Those  who  have 
the  hardihood  to  differ  from  such  authorities,  explain  away  the 
miracle  by  stating,  that  on  the  third  day  of  January,  the  beggar 
wished  the  countess,  who  expected  to  lie  in  every  hour,  might 
have  as  many  children  as  there  had  been  days  in  the  year,  and  that 
she  on  that  day  was  delivered  of  three  children. 

The  Hague  was  once  celebrated  for  its  many  elegant,  and 
especially  for  its  literary  societies;  the  latter  have  declined,  whilst 
those  of  France  have  flourished  anil  improved,  amidst  the  fright- 
ful fluctuations  of  revolutionary  tumult.  Erasmus,  Grotius,  and 
Boerhaave,  have  conferred  immortality  upon  the  letters  of  Hol- 
land, as  they  would  upon  those  of  any  nation;  but  the  literary 
glory  of  the  country  seems  not  to  have  spread  upon  the  demise  of 
these  illustrious  sages.  Hooft,  Vondel,  and  Antonides,  are  known 
in  Holland,  but  not  out  of  it ;  and  we  have  heard  but  faintly  of 
Huy^ens,  Graveszande,  and  Vandoveron  in  physic;  of  Voet  in 
jurisprudence,  and  Burman  and  Gronovius  in  the  belles  lettres. 

It  is  certain,  that  if  the  Dutch  poets  are  to  be  considered  as 
favoured  by  Apollo,  a  condescension  which  those  who  are  best 
acquainted  with  their  productions  much  doubt,  they  have  made 
more  successful  advances  in  the  most  difficult  of  poetical  compo- 
sition. I  have  heard  of  three  epic  writers;  Antonides,  beforemen- 
tioned,  who  wrote  an  epic  poem  on  the  river  Y,  on  which  the  city 
of  Amsterdam  is  erected;  Rotzans,  and  the  author  of  Abraham  de 
Aartsvader,  or  the  history  of  Abraham  the  Patriarch.  The  Dutch 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  H3 

mention  with  great  exultation  the  name  of  De  Cotts,  who,  like  our 
Prior,  united  the  characters  of  poet  and  ststesman;  his  sensibility 
is  said  to  have  been  very  acute,  his  fancy  very  luxuriant,  and  his 
powers  of  versification  very  mellifluous.  So  attractive  were  the 
Muses,  that  when  he  held  the  splendid  office  of  lord  keeper  of  the 
seals  in  Holland  and  West  Friezland,  and  stadtholder  of  the  fiefs, 
he  retired  to  his  native  shades  to  tune  his  oaten  reed,  which  entitled 
him  amongst  his  countrymen  to  the  appellation  of  the  Dutch 
Ovid :  at  the  earnest  solicitation  of  their  high  mightinesses,  he 
quitted  his  lyre  and  beloved  retreat,  and  appeared  at  the  court  of 
Cromwell  in  the  character  of  ambassador  of  the  States  to  England, 
where  he  was  received  with  that  politeness  and  attention  which 
our  country  never  fails  to  observe  towards  strangers  of  merit  and 
distinction.  Having  accomplished  the  object  of  his  mission,  he  re- 
tired from  the  bustle  of  life  to  his  native  country,  in  the  bosom  of 
which  he  expired,  beloved,  honoured,  and  lamented. 

I  was  not  much  surprised  to  find  that  the  splendor  of  the 
Hague  was  principally  confined  to  its  buildings,  although  it  has 
been  so  often,  in  other  times,  celebrated  for  its  magnificence  and 
the  expense  of  its  inhabitants:  the  revolution  expelled  its  hereditary- 
princes,  dispersed  its  nobles,  and  visited  every  description  of  soci- 
ety with  more  or  less  distress.  However,  I  was  informed  by  thostj 
who  were  enabled  to  compare,  that  it  is  again  rearing  its  head. 
Before  the  revolution,  sumptuous  equipages  and  various  other 
characteristics  of  polished  luxury  were  displayed  in  almost  every 
street;  and  the  foreign  ministers  vied  with  each  other  in  costly 
splendor:  during  the  operation  of  that  political  hurricane  scarce 
any  other  carriage  was  to  be  seen  save  a  few  crazy  fiacres,  and 
every  servant  was  stripped  of  his  livery.  At  present,  society  seems 
to  be  returning  to  many  of  its  original  habits,  and  some  handsome 
equipages  appeared  in  different  parts  of  the  town;  yet,  upon  the 
whole,  the  first  impression  of  its  gloom  was  never  effaced. 

Upon  inquiry  after  the  present  state  of  literature  at  this  place, 

I  found  it  was  considered  at  a  very  low  ebb :  the  press  of  the 

Hague  was  once  justly  celebrated,  but  has  of  late  emitted  little 

more  than  a  few  pamphlets  of  inconsiderable  merit.  Before  the 

P 


1 14  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

revolution  there  were  several  capital  booksellers*  shops,  of  which 
I  could  only  discover  two;  the  books  in  their  shops,  apparently 
the  remains  of  declining  literary  traffic,  were  neither  very  nume- 
rous nor  very  valuable.  The  booksellers  formerly  found  very  ample- 
encouragement  in  the  affluence  of  the  court,  and  many  petty  Ger- 
man princes  who  selected  the  Hague  for  their  residence.  It  has 
been  asserted  that  as  the  Hague  contained  the  seat  of  the  executive 
government  and  of  the  representative  bodies  during  the  revolution, 
it  suffered  much  less  than  any  other  town  in  the  republic;  but  this 
I  was  well  assured  was  not  the  case,  because  the  commercial  towns 
.still  derived  resources  from  their  commerce  and  enterprize, 
through  the  medium  of  neutral  bottoms  and  other  circuitous  modes 
of  traffic,  notwithstanding  the  severity  of  British  blockades  and 
the  vigilance  of  British  cruizers. 

The  Hague  has  produced  several  very  distinguished  paintefs  ; 
amongst  others  I  must  beg  to  mention  Daniel  Mytens,  who  was 
born  in  1 636,  and  went  to  study  at  Rome,  and  afterwards  employed 
himself  in  designing  after  the  antique,  in  copying  the  most  cele- 
brated paintings  of  the  best  artists,  and  adding  considerably  to  his 
improvement  by  an  intimacy  which  he  formed  there  with  Carlo 
Maratti  and  Carlo  Loti.  The  dreadful  habits  of  dissipation  to 
which  Mytens  was  addicted,  deplorably  interfered  with  his  advance- 
ment in  his  profession.  His  imagination  was  lively,  his  colouring 
agreeable,  his  composition  good,  and  he  designed  with  great  facility. 
After  a  long  residence  in  Italy,  he  returned  to  the  Hague,  where 
he  was  much  admired  and  cherished  by  the  lovers  of  the  arts :  his 
eminent  qualities  were  displayed  in  those  works  which  he  painted 
at  Rome,  and  upon  his  return  to  the  Hague,  where,  not  many 
years  after,  his  productions  became  greatly  depreciated,  from  his 
constant  indulgence  in  the  most  intemperate  excesses,  to  which  he 
at  length  fell  a  victim  in  the  year  1688.  He  acquired  much  and 
deserved  reputation  for  the  sketch  of  a  very  noble  design  for  a 
ceiling  of  the  painters'  hall  at  the  Hague:  this  work  commenced, 
and  left  unfinished  for  some  years  ;  at  length  he  roused  himself 
from  his  indolence,  but  it  was  only  to  show  what  ravages  it  had 
made  on  his  fine  abilities,  for  he  only  injured  the  work  which  he 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  U5 

attempted  to  improve.  Another  distinguished  artist,  who  has  shed 
lustre  upon  the  Hague,  is  John  Hanneman,  who  was  born  here  in 
1611;  by  some  he  was  said  to  have  been  a  pupil  of  Vandyke.  By 
others,  and  with  greater  probability,  that  of  Hubert  Ravestein ; 
and  in  the  soft  and  delicate  tints  of  his  carnations,  he  is  considered 
to  be  very  little  inferior  to  Vandyke:  many  of  Hanneman's  copies 
of  that  illustrious  artist  are  mistaken  for  the  originals. 

Hanneman  continued  in  England  sixteen  years,  and  upon  his 
return  to  the  Hague  became  the  favourite  painter  of  the  Princess 
of  Orange:  he  was  also  employed  by  the  Prince  of  Nassau,  for 
whom  he  painted,  amongst  others,  several  historical  pictures, 
which  are  now  highly  esteemed.  The  third  and  last  artist  I  shall 
mention  is  John  le  Due,  who  was  born  at  the  Hague  in  1636, 
and  was  a  disciple  of  Paul  Potter,  so  justly  celebrated  as  a  painter 
of  cattle,  whose  works,  however,  are  often  scarcely  distinguishable 
from  those  of  his  pupil.  His  principal  subjects  were  the  same  aa 
those  of  his  master,  viz.  horses,  sheep,  goats,  cows,  8cc.  He  finish- 
ed his  pictures  very  highly,  and  possessed  great  facility  of  pencil 
and  purity  of  style.  He  was  appointed  director  of  the  academy  of 
painting  at  the  Hague  in  the  year  1671.  The  desire  of  distinguish- 
ing himself  in  arms  induced  him  to  exert  all  his  interest  to  obtain 
a  company,  and  such  was  his  gallantry  in  the  field,  that  he  obtained 
the  epithet  of  "  Brave,"  after  which,  unfortunately  for  the  arts,  he 
neither  painted  nor  designed. 


116       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

VEGETABLE     PROBLEMS APPROACH     TO      LEYDEN.. ...GENI. 

DESCRIPTIONOFTHATTOWN.. ..THE  TOWNHALL... .CELEBRATED 
PICTURE  OF  LUCAS  VAN  LEVDEN ANECDOTE  OF  THAT  PAIN- 
TER  ALSO  OF  KAREL  DE  MOOR PICTURE  OF  THE  SIEGE  OF 

LEYDEN DESCRIPTION  OF  THAT  HORRIBLE  SIEGE GENE- 
ROUS AND  HEROIC  CONDUCT  OF  THE  DUTCH  WOMEN ALSO  OF 

PETER  ADRIAN. ...THE  MOUNT. ...UNIVERSITY  OF  LEYDEN. ...THE 

STUDENTS ANECDOTESOFBOERHAAVE PETER  THE  GREAT 

GENIUS  AND  DIFFIDENCE. ...CONFIDENCE  IN  PROVIDENCE.... 

MONUMENT  OF  BOERHAAVE. 

AFTER  spending  some  days  very  pleasantly  at  the  Hague,  I 
proceeded  to  the  Leyden  treckschuyt,  which  lay  at  a  great  distance 
from  the  hotel,  where  I  found,  from  the  blunder  of  the  waiter  be- 
fore detailed,  that  1  was  considered  as  a  personage  of  considerable 
consequence,  on  account  of  my  having  engaged  the  whole  of  the 
ruif  to  myself.  The  day  was  brilliantly  fine,  and  nothing  could  be 
more  delightful  than  my  passage  to  Leyden :  for  two  miles  and  a 
half  the  left  bank  of  the  canal  presented  an  unbroken  succession 
of  handsome  country  houses  and  highly  cultivated  grounds,  which 
although  laid  out  like  so  many  vegetable  problems,  abounded  with 
a  variety  of  forms,  which,  as  they  were  clad  in  luxuriant  green, 
were  very  agreeable.  Many  of  these  spots  were  graced  by  the  aca- 
cia and  Weymouth  pine,  to  which  the  soil  and  climate  seemed  to 
be  congenial.  On  the  other  side  were  rich  meadows,  whose  vivid 
green  seemed  to  rival  that  of  the  emerald,  and  corn-fields  yellow 
with  harvest.  Enchanted  with  the  day  and  the  scenery,  I  envied 
not  the  aquatic  pomp  of  Cleopatra,  although 

"The  barge  she  sat  in  like  aburnish'd  throne 
"  Burnt  on  the  water;  the  poop  was  beaten  gold. 
*'  Purple  the  sails,  and  so  performed,  that 
"  The  winds  were  love-sick  with  them." 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  117 

The  blunder  of  the  waiter  added  not  a  little  to  the  delights  of 
my  passage,  for  I  sat  a  solitary  grandee  upon  the  top  of  the  cabin, 
without  a  soul  to  interrupt  the  happy  frame  of  my  mind  formed  by 
the  lovely  prospects  on  every  side  of  me.  In  this  agreeable  man- 
ner three  hours  and  a  half  passed  away  with  feathered  fleetness', 
and  at  the  end  of  a  long  avenue  of  trees  and  a  line  of  water,  the 
spires  and  elevated  buildings  of  Leyden  appeared.  We  stopped 
about  half  way  from  the  Hague  at  Leydehendam,  a  very  neat 
pretty  village,  the  neighbourhood  of  which  abounds  with  pleasure 
houses  and  gardens.  The  country  as  I  approached  Leyden  ap- 
peared to  be  thickly  wooded,  and  displayed  the  novel  variety  of  a 
gentle  undulation  of  ground.  After  passing  through  a  beautiful 
boulevard,  and  crossing  some  drawing  bridges,  I  entered  the  ele- 
gant city  of  Leyden  through  the  white  gate,  and  proceeded  to  a 
very  comfortable  hotel  in  the  principal  street,  called  the  Broad 
street,  the  length,  spaciousness,  and  beauty  of  which  entitles  it  to 
the  highest  admiration :  there  is  no  canal  in  it,  and  the  buildings 
on  each  side  are  very  handsome,  many  of  them  splendid  mansions. 
This  seat  of  learning  is  considered  to  be  one  of  the  handsomest  in 
Holland,  and  next  in  size  to  Amsterdam;  the  entrance  to  it  is 
through  seven  stone  gates,  at  each  of  which  is  a  draw -bridge :  the 
town  is  surrounded  with  a  rampart,  and  a  deep,  broad  canal,  and 
is  adorned  by  beautiful  shady  walks.  The  number  of  bridges  in 
this  city  is  astonishing,  they  are  said  to  exceed  one  hundred  and 
forty-five  of  stone  and  railed  with  iron.  It  has  also  many  canals, 
the  most  beautiful  of  which  is  the  Rapenburg.  It  has  been  com- 
pared by  travellers  to  Oxford,  but  I  cannot  see  any  resemblance, 
except  in  its  being  devoted  to  learning,  and  consequently  present- 
ing many  of  those  features  of  meditation  and  consequent  tran- 
quillity, which  are  to  be  found  in  places  destined  to  similiar  ob- 
jects :  but  in  its  fortification,  its  buildings,  streets,  and  canals,  there 
is  unquestionably  no  resemblance.  The  channels  or  gutters  of  the 
Broad  street  are  covered  with  boards  which  open  like  a  trap  door, 
into  which  the  moment  any  dirt  is  lodged,  it  is  removed  by  per- 
sons appointed  for  that  purpose;  and  lofty  common  pumps,  with 
large  brass  ornaments  constantly  scoured  and  kept  bright,  are 


118  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

placed  in  different  parts  of  it,  to  supply  the  inhabitants  and  to 
purify  the  street,  of  which  they  are  not  a  little  proud.  The  fame 
of  Lucas  Van  Leyden  made  the  stadt-house  or  town-hall  the  ob- 
ject of  my  first  visit;  it  is  a  vast  gothic  building,  presenting  a  very 
long  irregular  front,  in  a  very  uncouth  style  of  architecture,  sur- 
mounted by  a  small  steeple,  which  is  crowded  with  carillons,  and 
stands  in  the  centre  of  the  Broad  street.  As  I  ascended  the  grand 
staircase,  a  painter  was  giving  a  finishing  touch  to  some  large 
stone  lions,  which  by  way  of  blending  them  with  the  stone  colour 
of  the  rest  of  the  building,  he  had  painted  vividly  red.  In  one  of 
the  apartments,  which  was  very  heavy  and  gloomy,  I  beheld  the 
celebrated  production  of  Lucas  Van  Leyden,  or  Hugens,  who  was 
born  here  in  1494,  and  died  in  1533.  This  picture  is  in  three  di- 
vision ,  the  two  external  smaller  ones  being  made  like  folding 
doors,  to  close  if  necessary  over  the  middle  one.  The  subject  is 
the  last  judgment,  for  which  vast  sums  of  money  have  been  re- 
peatedly offered  to  the  magistrates  of  the  town  and  refused.  I 
must  confess  I  felt  no  more  pleasure  in  contemplating  this  picture 
than  what  arose  from  its  great  antiquity.  There  are  a  great  num- 
ber of  figures  in  it:  the  females  are  wholly  destitute  of  beauty,  at 
the  same  time  there  is  a  freedom  in  the  outline:  many  of  their 
limbs  appear  to  be  elongated,  and  every  head  seems  to  have  been 
taken  from  the  same  subject,  and  wholly  destitute  of  expression; 
however,  considering  the  early  period  in  which  the  artist  flourish- 
ed, it  is  a  very  curious  and  valuable  production.  This  painter  was 
instructed  in  the  principles  of  his  art  by  his  father,  Hugens  Jacobs, 
an  artist  of  some  consideration :  it  is  said  that  Lucas  from  his  in- 
fancy displayed  incessant  application,  and  at  the  age  of  nine  and 
twelve  years  astonished  the  artists  of  his  time  by  his  works.  After 
he  had  learned  the  rudiments  of  his  art  under  his  father,  he  became 
a  pupil  of  Cornelius  Engelbrecht ;  at  the  age  of  fifteen  he  painted 
the  history  of  St.  Hubert,  which  elevated  him  to  high  distinction 
in  his  art.  On  account  of  the  principles  of  perspective  not  being 
known  in  his  early  time,  he  proportioned  the  strength  of  his  co- 
louring to  the  different  degrees  of  distance,  in  which  his  objects 
were  placed.  He  painted  not  only  in  oil,  but  irr  destemper  and  pn 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  119 

glass.  A  famous  print  of  this  master's  engraving,  the  subject  a 
bagpiper,  is  also  mentioned,  which  sold  for  a  hundred  ducatoons 
or  twenty  pounds  sterling. 

In  the  justice  hall  is  a  celebrated  picture  of  Harel  de  Moor, 
who  was  born  in  this  town  in  1656;  the  subject  Brutus  condem- 
ning his  sons,  the  design,  the  colouring  and  finishing  of  which  are 
very  beautiful.  De  Moor  had  great  and  highly  merited  honours 
paid  to  him  by  various  princes  and  distinguished  personages,  par- 
ticularly by  the  emperor  of  Germany  who  directed  his  ambassador 
Count  Singendoff  to  engage  him  to  paint  the  portraits  of  Prince 
Eugene  and  the  Duke  of  Marlborough  on  horseback,  with  which 
his  imperial  patron  was  so  gratified,  that  he  conferred  upon  him 
the  honour  of  knighthood,  and  nobly  rewarded  him  in  a  more  sub- 
stantial manner  for  his  admirable  production:  he  had  also  the 
honour  of  painting  that  mighty  savage  of  the  North,  Peter  the 
Great,  Czar  of  Muscovy.  Under  the  picture  of  Brutus  are  some 
elegant  Latin  verses ;  there  is  also  a  large  picture  representing  the 
bravery  of  its  citizens,  who  are  rendered  immortal  in  the  page  of 
history  for  the  heroic  valour  they  displayed  during  a  siege,  which 
in  the  year  1573,  for  five  months,  visited  this  place  with  all  the 
horrors  of  war,  disease,  and  famine.  The  historian  can  scarcely  do 
adequate  justice  to  tbese  heroes.  After  the  Spaniards  had  been 
compelled  to  raise  the  siege  of  Alkmaar,  they  determined  upon 
directing  their  forces  against  Leyden,  from  the  trenches  of  which 
they  were  bravely  repulsed  by  Count  Louis  of  Nassau,  brother  to 
the  then  Prince  of  Orange;  but  having  been  reinforced,  they  re- 
turned to  the  attack ;  when  the  Spanish  general,  Francis  Valdey, 
discovering  that  he  could  not  take  the  place  by  storm,  resolved 
upon  reducing  it  by  famine,  and  a  scene  of  horror  ensued  which 
baffles  the  powers  of  the  pen  to  describe.  The  Spanish  General, 
Frederic  of  Toledo,  son  of  the  execrable  Duke  of  Alva,  repulsed 
a  body  of  English  auxiliaries  who  were  coming  to  the  relief  of  the 
besieged,  in  consequence  of  which  the  blockade  was  so  vigilantly 
conducted,  that  the  wretched  inhabitants  could  derive  no  provisions 
from  without.  In  this  dreadful  dilemma,  they  drew  lots  to  deter- 
mine which  should  fall  each  day  to  afford  sustenance  to  the  rest 


120       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

with  their  bodies ;  and  it  is  said  that  the  spirit  of  patriotism  rail  so 
high,  that  many  of  them  anticipated  this  desperate  alternative,  and 
voluntarily  slew  themselves  to  furnish  food  to  their  brave  fellow- 
citizens  and  soldiers.  An  extraordinary  female  patriot,  of  the  name 
of  Kenneva,  headed  the  women,  led  them  to  the  ramparts,  where 
they  assisted  the  nearly  exhausted  soldiery  in  working  the  cannon, 
and  displayed  that  enthusiastic  courage  which  great  occasions  wil! 
generally  find  lodged  in  that  bosom  which  is  the  seat  of  every 
gentle,  every  tender  feeling,  and  ought  only  to  heave  with  the 
tenderest  emotions.  Many  of  them  stabbed  themselves,  to  assist  in 
preserving  the  survivors,  and  expiring  exclaimed,  "  See,  my  poor 
valiant  friends,  your  provision  for  the  rest  of  the  day."  But  notwith- 
standing these  terrible  sacrifices,  and  supplies  of  human  flesh,  many 
thousands  of  the  garrison  and  burghers  perished.  The  Spaniards, 
having  been  informed  of  their  situation,  again  summoned  them  to 
surrender,  and  allowed  a  truce  of  an  hour  for  deliberation,  during 
which  a  consultation  was  held,  the  un  animous  determination  of  which 
was  contained  the  following  reply:  "  Tell  your  arrogant  general,  that 
we  shall  not  want  the  means  of  life  whilst  a  left  arm  remains  upon 
any  of  our  shoulders,  and  with  our  right  we  shall  continue  to  fight 
for  our  liberties  to  the  last."  At  length,  broken  down  by  their  fright- 
ful situation,  and  hopeless  of  relief,  after  having  exhibited  prodi- 
gies  of  valor,  and  the  sublimest  acts  of  patriotism  and  resignation, 
the  miserable  survivors  of  this  ghastly  scene  of  desolation  assem- 
bled round  the  house  of  Peter  Adrian  de  Werf,  the  chief  magi- 
strate of  the  city,  a  man  of  great  influence  amongst  the  people, 
and  implored  him  to  sanction  with  his  fiat  the  surrender  of  the 
place;  but  this  noble  being  preferring,  like  Cato,  to  perish  rather 
than  see  his  country  in  the  possession  of  a  tyrant,  thus  addressed 
his  emaciated  brethren:  "  My  brave  comrades!  cut  this  body  in 
pieces;  it  is  better  that  I  should  die  for  you,  than  by  the  enemy: 
my  wounds  disable  me  from  further  service.  Take  courage,  let 
me  receive  death  from  your  hands,  and  let  my  miserable  frame 
furnish  a  wretched  meal  for  some  of  you.  Take  me,  and  may  Ley- 
den  be  victorious,  and  her  glory  immortal  I"  Deeply  impressed  by 
such  firmness  and  eloquence,  his  auditor^  turned  their  haggard 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.1  121 

countenances  aside,  and  with  the  convulsive  energy  of  expiring 
nature,  rush  again  to  .the  rampart,  and  soon  afterwards  they 
were  thrown  into  an  agony  of  joy  by  the  arrival  of  two  carrier 
pigeons,  to  whose  feet  were  tied  stalks  of  corn  and  hemp,  in  which 
letters  were  concealed,  announcing  that  relief  was  at  hand.  The 
Dutch  confederates,  having  no  other  mode  of  relieving  the  inhabi- 
tants of  Leyden,  broke  down  the  dykes  of  the  Maese  and  tlus 
Yssel,  inundated  the  Spanish  camp,  and  the  beautiful  country 
which  surrounds  Leyden,  and  enabled  Louis  Brissot,  admiral  of 
Zealand,  to  send  many  flat-bottomed  boats,  well  armed,  to  the  suc- 
cour of  the  besieged.  This  desperate  measure  compelled  the  Spa- 
nish general  to  evacuate  his  camp,  and  to  retire  with  such  of  his 
army  as  did  not  perish  by  the  waters,  into  their  own  country.  This 
siege,  which  commenced  shortly  after  Easter,  was  raised  the  third 
of  October,  on  which  day  a  supply  of  provisions  was  brought  to 
the  famished  inhabitants,  who  greedily  devoured  the  food,  amidst 
tears  and  convulsive  inarticulate  exclamations  to  heaven  for  their 
delivery,  and  many  of  them  dropped  down  dead  upon  too  rapidly 
satisfying  their  ravenous  appetites.  After  this  signal  deliverance, 
the  Prince  of  Orange,  although  suffering  under  severe  illness, 
ordered  himself  to  be  carried  in  a  litter  to  Leyden,  to  condole  with 
and  express  his  admiration  of  its  heroic  inhabitants:  the  interview, 
as  well  as  many  scenes  which  occurred  during  the  siege,  must 
have  afforded  a  fine  subject  for  the  pencil.  He  gave  them  their 
option  of  being  exempted  for  a  certain  period  from  taxes,  or  of 
having  an  university  founded  in  their  town;  when,  with  noble  and 
disinterested  wisdom,  they  gave  the  preference  to  the  latter.  Never 
did'any  seat  of  learning  originate  from  a  nobler  cause:  it  may  be 
said  to  have  been  endowed  by  the  blood  of  the  brave.  The  clergy  of 
Leyden,Jn  a  public  oration,  still  celebrate  the  anniversary  of  the 
glorious  third  of  October,  in  which  the  story  of  the  siege,  and  the 
deliverance  of  the  town  are  feelingly  recapitulated.  I  was  surprised 
to  find  that  such  a  subject  had  not  more  frequently  engaged  the 
pencil  of  the  many  divine  artists  which  Holland  has  produced : 
the  picture  which  led  me  to  mention  the  above  story  is,  in  my 

Q 


122  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

humbte  opinion,  unworthy  of  the  subject;  the  figures  are  badly 
grouped,  and  express  no  one  emotion  which  can  affect  the  mind. 
After  quitting  the  stadt-house,  the  evening  being  very  fine,  I 
ascended  a  large  mount,  which  may  be  considered  as  a  great 
curiosity  in  Holland,  in  th'e  centre  of  the  town,  where  there  is 
a  fine  view  of  it :  this  mount  is  surrounded  by  a  high  wall,  and 
is  said  to  be  the  scite  of  a  castle  built  by  Hengist,  king  of  the  > 
West  Saxons,  on  his  conquest  in  England,  or,  what  is  more 
likely,  by  one  of  the  antient  counts  of  Holland.  The  town  pre- 
sented a  very  beautiful  appearance  from  this  spot,  but  it  is  not 
elevated  enough  to  enable  the  visitor  to  see  the  surrounding  coun- 
try: the  fruit-trees  in  the  gardens  which  encompassed  the  wall 
were  loaded  with  very  fine  fruit,  particularly  pears,  plumbs,  and 
apples.  This  place  is  much  resorted  to,  on  Sundays  and  holidays, 
by  the  citizens  and  their  families,  to  smoke  and  enjoy  the  beauty 
of  the  prospect,  and  the  refreshing  sweetness  of  the  air. 

The  next  morning  I  visited  the  university  of  Leyden,  which 
stands  by  the  Rapenburg  canal:  it  is  the  most  venerable  seminary 
in  Holland;  and,  by  the  great  number  of  learned  and  famous 
men  which  it  has  produced,  does  honour  to  the  luster  of  its  origin. 
There  is  scarcely  a  science  which  has  not  been  improved  and 
extended  in  this  hallowed  seat  of  learning;  which  has  to  boast 
amongst  its  members  the  immortal  name  of  the  younger  Scaliger, 
who  bequeathed  to  it  his  valuable  Hebrew  library  ;  of  the  two 
ilensius,  father  and  son ;  the  former  of  whom  was  invited  by  Pope 
Urban  the  eighth  to  Venice,  "  to  rescue,"  as  he  expressed  it, 
"  that  city  from  barbarism ;"  and  both  of  whom  shone  like  stars  of 
the  first  magnitude  in  every  branch  of  graceful  literature ;  of  Sal- 
masius,  the  profound  and  able  competitor  of  our  immortal  Milton  ; 
of  Boerhaave,  whose  consummate  knowledge  of  physic,  attracted 
pupils  from  the  most  distant  parts  of  Europe ;  and  of  many  other 
illustrious  persons,  who  have  shed  honour  and  distinction  upon 
their  country  and  the  times  in  which  they  flourished.  The  students 
board  in  town  at  different  lodging-houses,  wherever  their  inclina- 
tions or  resources  may  dispose  them;  they  wear  no  regular  habit; 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  123 

when  the  professors  appear  in  public,  they  wear  a  large  black 
silk  gown,  bordered  with  velvet,  on  which  the  word  <  Leyden'  is 
worked  in  silver.  My  next  visit  was  to  the  botanic  garden,  rendered 
immortal  by  the  illustrious  Boerhaave,  as  that  of  Upsal,  in  Sweden, 
has  been  by  Linnaeus.  Haller  says,  in  speaking  of  Boerhaave  in 
the  Leyden  Botanical  Garden, "  sape  vidimus  ante  Auroram  optimum 
senen  ligneiscalceis  per  hortum  repent  em,  ut  comminus  et  cultum  her- 
barum  perspiceret,  et  Jiores  fructusque  s/iecularetur.  We  have  often 
seen  the  good  old  man  before  the  morning  dawn,  crawling  about 
the  garden  in  the  wooden  slippers,  that  he  might  immediately 
superintend  the  culture  of  plants,'  and  speculate  on  their  flowers 
and  fruits."  This  great  man  was  born  at  Woerhout,  near  Leyden-, 
in  1668  ;  at  the  age  of  fifteen  he  found  himself  without  parents, 
protection,  advice,  or  fortune :  he  had  then  profoundly  studied 
theology,  intending  to  devote  himself  to  a  clerical  life;  but  the 
science  of  nature  presented  all  her  attractions,  and  for  some  time 
wholly  absorbed  his  contemplation.  In  1693  he  was  created  doctor 
of  physic,  which  he  then  regularly  practised.  At  this  time  he  could 
scarcely  exist  by  his  labours,  and  was  compelled  to  teach  the 
mathematics  to  procure  the  bare  necessaries  of  life,  although  he 
left  at  his  demise  the  vast  fortune  of  two  hundred  thousand  pounds. 
At  length  his  genius  dissolved  the  darkness  in  which  he  was  enve- 
loped, many  powerful  friends  gathered  round  him,  and  procured 
for  him  the  valuable  appointments  of  professor  of  medicine  in  the 
university  of  Leyden,  of  chemistry,  and  of  botany.  The  Academy 
of  Sciences  at  Paris  and  the  Royal  Society  at  London,  to  each  of 
which  he  imparted  his  discoveries  in  chemistry,  invited  him  to 
become  one  of  their  members.  Whilst  Boerhaave  presided  in  the 
chair,  in  chemistry,  medicine,  and  botany,  the  city  of  Leyden  was 
considered  the  school  of- Europe  in  these  sciences.  In  1715,  when 
Peter  the  Great  went  to  Holland  to  study  maritime  affairs,  he 
regularly  attended  the  lectures  of  Boerhaave.  So  widely  diffused 
was  his  fame,  that  a  mandarine  in  China  wrote  to  him  a  letter  thus 
superscribed ;  To  the  illustrious  Boerhaave,  physician  in  Europe,** 
and  it  was  regularly  received.  It  was  the  daily  practice  of  this 


124       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

eminent  physician,  through  his  whole  life,  as  soon  as  he  rose  in 
the  morning,  which  was  generally  very  early,  to  retire  for  an  hour 
to  private  prayer,  and  meditation  on  some  part  of  the  Scriptures. 
Pie  often  told  his  friends,  when  they  asked  him  how  it  was  possible 
to  go  through  so  much  fatigue,  that  it  was  this  which  gave  him 
spirit  and  vigour  in  the  business  of  the  day.  This  he  therefore  recom- 
mended as  the  best  rule  he  could  give;  for  nothing,  he  said,  could 
tend  more  to  the  health  of  the  body  than  the  tranquillity  of  the 
mind,  and  that  he  knew  nothing  which  could  support  himself  and  his 
fellow-creatures,  amidst  the  various  distresses  of  human  life  but  a 
well-grounded  confidence  in  the  Supreme  Being,  upon  the  principles 
of  Christianity :  the  truth  of  his  doctrine  he  finely  illustrated  in 
his  severe  illness  in  1722,  when  the  course  of  his  lectures  and  his 
practice  were  long  interrupted.  Of  his  sagacity  and  wonderful 
penetration  in  the  discovery  and  description  of  such  distempers 
as  betray  themselves  by  no  symptoms  to  common  eyes,  such  sur- 
prising accounts  have  been  given,  as  scarcely  can  be  credited, 
though  attested  beyond  all  doubt.  Yet  this  great  master  of  medi- 
cal knowledge  was  so  far  from  feeling  a  presumptuous  confidence 
in  his  mighty  talents,  or  from  being  inflated  by  his  prodigious 
wealth, that  his  condescension  to  the  humblest  being  who  approach- 
ed him,  and  his  unceasing  professional  application  were  ever  the 
theme  of  admiration  and  astonishment. 

He  often  used  to  say,  what  will  make  many  a  practitioner  in 
physic  tremble,  that  the  life  of  a  patient  (if  trifled  with  or  neglect- 
ed), would  one  day  be  required  at  the  hand  of  the  physician.  He 
used  to  call  the  poor  his  best  patients,  nobly  observing,  that  God 
would  be  their  paymaster;  the  lustre  of  his  eyes  bespoke  the  ac- 
tivity and  vivacity  of  his  mind.  He  was  always  cheerful  and  desir- 
ous of  promoting  every  valuable  end  of  conversation.  He  disregard- 
ed calumny  and  detraction;  for  even  Boerhaave  had  enemies, 
and  never  troubled  himself  to  confute  them.  "  They  are  sparks," 
said  he,  "  which,  if  you  do  not  blow,  will  go  out  of  themselves. 
The  surest  remedy  against  scandal  is  to  live  it  down,  by  a  perse- 
verance in  well  doing;  and  by  praying  to  God  that  he  would  cure 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.       125 

the  distempered  minds  of  those  who  traduce  and  injure  us."  He 
was  never  over-awed  by  the  magnificence  or  presence  of  great 
men,  but  boldly  persisted  in  proceeding  in  what  he  considered  to 
be  right,  and  left  the  consequence  to  God.  He  was  enabled,  with 
unexampled  celerity  and  acuteness,  to  penetrate  into  the  tempers 
and  characters  of  persons  at  a  glance  of  his  eye.  A  friend,  one  day, 
who  had  often  admired  his  patience  under  great  provocations, 
asked  him,  if  he  ever  knew  what  it  was  to  be  angry?  to  which 
Boerhaave  replied  with  the  most  perfect  frankness,  "  that  he  v/as 
naturally  quick  of  resentment;  but,  that  by  prayer  and  meditation, 
he  had  obtained  complete  mastery  over  his  passions;  this  he  at- 
tributed, as  he  did  every  good  thought,  and  every  laudable  action, 
to  his  God.', 

About  the  middle  of  the  year  1 737,  he  felt  the  first  approaches 
of  that  indisposition  which  was  destined  to  bring  him  to  his  grave, 
viz.  a  disorder  in  his  breast,  which  was  occasionally  very  painful? 
often  threatened  him  with  immediate  suffocation,  and  finally  termi- 
nated in  an  universal  dropsy:  during  all  the  anguish  which  he  suf- 
fered, his  placid  temper  and  firmness  of  mind  never  forsook  him; 
he  attended  at  once  to  the  ordinary  duties  of  life  as  if  in  full  health, 
and  prepared  for  that  death  which  his  skill  and  experience  enabled 
him  to  know  v/as  not  very  distant. 

About  three  weeks  before  his  dissolution,  when  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Schultens,  one  of  the  most  learned  and  exemplary  divines  of  his 
age,  attended  him  at  his  country  house,  the  Doctor  desired  his 
prayers,  and  afterwards  entered  into  a  sublime  discourse  with  him 
on  the  spiritual  and  immaterial  parts  of  the  soul,  which  he  illustra- 
ted with  wonderful  perspicuity,  by  a  description  of  the  effects  which 
the  infirmities  of  his  body  had  upon  his  faculties,  which,  however, 
they  did  not  so  oppress,  or  vanquish,  but  his  soul  was  always  mas- 
ter of  itself,  and  always  resigned  to  the  pleasure  of  its  Maker, 
and  then  added,  "  He  who  loves  God  ought  to  think  nothing  desi- 
rable but  what  is  most  pleasing  to  the  supreme  goodness."  As 
death  approached  nearer,  he  seemed  to  be  more  happy,  amidst  the 
increase  of  corporeal  torments,  an$  at  length,  on  the  23d  Septem- 


126  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

ber,  1738,  he  sunk  under  them  in  his  70th  year.  His  funeral  ora« 
tion  was  spoken  in  Latin  before  the  university  of  Leyden,  to  a 
Crowded  audience,  by  his  friend  Mr.  Schultens,  amidst  tears  of 
genuine  regret  and  sympathy.  The  city  of  Leyden  has  raised  a 
monument  in  the  church  of  St.  Peter,  to  the  sanative  genius  of 
Boerhaave,  "  Salutifero  Boerhaavii  genio  sacrum."  It  consists  of  an 
urn  upon  a  pedestal  of  black  marble,  with  a  group  representing  the 
four  ages  of  life,  and  the  two  sciences  in  which  Boerhaave  excelled. 
The  capital  of  this  basis  is  decorated  with  a  drapery  of  white 
marble,  in  which  the  artist  has  shown  the  different  emblems  of 
disorders,  and  their  remedies.  Upon  the  pedestal  is  the  medallion  of 
Boerhaave;  at  the  extremity  of  the  frame,  a  ribband  displays  the 
favourite  motto  of  this  learned  man,  "  Simplex  vigilum  veri."  Pro- 
fessor Allamand  had  destined  a  very  fine  piece  of  red  jasper  to  be 
employed  in  this  medallion,  but  on  account  of  the  great  expense 
of  cutting  the  stone  his  design  was  abandoned.  His  pictures  re- 
present him  as  above  the  middle  size,  well  proportioned,  and  of  a 
strong  constitution ;  when  age  had  silvered  over  his  hair,  his  coun- 
tenance was  said  to  have  been  extremely  venerable  and  expressive, 
and  to  have  much  resembled  the  head  of  Socrates,  but  with  fea- 
tures more  softened  and  engaging.  He  was  an  eloquent  orator, 
and  declaimed  with  great  dignity  and  grace.    He  taught  very  me- 
thodically, and  with  great  precision,  but  always  so  captivated  his 
auditors,  that  they  regretted  the  close  of  his  discourses*  which  he 
often  enlivened  with  a  sprightly  turn  of  raillery ;  but  it  was  ever 
refined,  ingenious,  and  incapable  of  offending.  He  used  to  say, 
"  that  decent  mirth  was  the  salt  of  life."   In  the  practice  of  medi- 
cine he  gave  a  decided  preference  to  green  over  dried  herbs,  think- 
ing that  there  was  more  virtue  in  herbs  when  they  had  their  juices, 
than  when  decayed  and  withered.  He  was  a  great  admirer  of  sim- 
ples, and  consequently  Mras  not  a  great  patron  of  the  apothecaries. 
When  health  would  permit  he  regularly  rode  on  horseback;  when 
his  strength  began  to  fail  he  walked,  and  upon  his  return  home, 
music,  of  which  he  was  passionately  fond,  gladdened  the  hours  of 
relaxation,  and  enabled  him  to  return  to  his  labours  with  redoubled 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  127 

alacrity.  Dr.  Johnson  has  written  the  following  beautiful  eulogium 
on  this  great  man ;  "  A  man  formed  by  nature  for  great  designs, 
and  guided  by  religion  in  the  exertion  of  his  abilities;  determined 
to  lose  none  of  his  hours,  when  he  had  attained  one  science,  he  at- 
tempted another;  he  added  physic  to  divinity;  chemistry  to  the 
mathematics,  and  anatomy  to  botany.  He  recommended  truth  by 
his  elegance,  and  embellished  the  philosopher  with  polite  litera- 
ture; yet  his  knowledge,  however  uncommon,  holds  in  his  charac- 
ter but  a  second  place ;  for  his  virtue  was  more  uncommon  than 
his  learning.  He  ascribed  all  his  abilities  to  the  bounty,  and  all  his 
goodness  to  the  grace  of  his  God.  May  those  who  study  his  writ- 
ings imitate  his  life !  and  those  who  endeavour  after  his  knowledge, 
aspire  likewise  to  his  piety." 


128       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


THE  BOTANIC  GARDEN THE    CELEBRATED    ANTIENT    PALM...., 

BUSTS  AND  STATUES. ...THEATRE  OF  ANATOMY.. ..LIBRARY  AND 
PORTRAITS  OF  DISTINGUISHED  PERSONS MUSEUM  OF  NATU- 
RAL HISTORY.. ..ATTRACTIONS  OF  THE  UNIVERSITY... .ITS  PRE- 
SENT CONDITION SEVERITY  OF  ITS  EXAMINATIONS ANEC- 
DOTES   OF    REMBRANDT HIS  GENIUS  AND  RAPACIOUSNESS 

A    STRATAGEM. ...CRITICISMS  ON  HIS  WORKS. ...MR.  DESENFAn's 

splendid  gallery  of  paintings john  of  leyden his 

ambition,   cruelty,  and  fate dutch  bowing saint 

peter's  church anecdote  of  Russian  prisoners. 

THE  botanic  garden  is  not  very  large ;  in  the  time  of  Boer- 
haave  it  must  have  been  small  indeed,  as  its  history  represents  it 
to  have  been  considerably  enlarged  since  thatperiod:  in  the  frontis- 
piece of  his  Index  Horti  L.  Bat.  1710,  it  is  represented  to  be  a 
petty  square  piece  of  ground.  It  now  occupies  about  four  acres, 
and  is  in  excellent  order:  the  trees  and  plants  are  marked  according 
to  the  Linnaean  system;  but  it  is  infinitely  inferior  in  value  and  ar- 
rangement to  the  botanic  gardens  of  Upsala  and  of  the  Dublin  So- 
ciety. Amongst  the  plants,  I  approached  with  the  reverence  due 
to  it,  the  venerable  remains  of  vegetable  antiquity,  in  the  shape  of 
a  palm,  which  stands  in  a  tub  in  the  open  air,  supported  by  a  thin 
frame  of  iron  work;  it  is  about  fourteen  feet  high,  and  was  raised 
from  seed  by  the  celebrated  Carolus  Clusius,  who  died  professor  at 
Leyden  in  1609  :  the  professor  who  attended  me,  presented  me 
with  a  bit  of  its  bark,  as  a  little  relic.  This  tree  and  the  pot  in 
which  it  grows,  are  also  figured  in  the  frontispiece  of  Boerhaave's 
Index  before  mentioned:  it  there  appears  to  have  been  about  half 
as  high  as  at  present,  and  is  said  to  be  the  palm  mentioned  by  Lin- 
naeus in  his  Prxlectiones  in  Ordines  Naturales  Plantarum,  p.  279 
published  by  Giseke  in  1792,  at  Hamburgh,  which  Linnseiis  sus- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.       129 

pected  to  be  a  chamxrops,  but  which,  as  the  ingenious  Dr.  Smith 
observes,  his  editor  rightly  refers  to  the  rhapis  flabelliformis,  Ait. 
Hort.  Kew,  v.  iii.  p.  473.  It  comes  from  China  and  Japan:  there 
is  a  tree  of  this  kind,  and  about  as  large,  in  the  botanic  garden  at 
Paris,  and  another  at  Pisa.  In  this  garden  is  also  the  ginkgo  of 
the  Chinese,  a  standard  twenty  feet  high;  Strelitzia  reginse,  Ait. 
Hort.  Kew,  v.  i.  p.  285,  tab.  2,  which  has  never  yet  flowered  in 
any  garden  out  of  England;  the  olea  laurifolia,  a  new  species  ac- 
cording to  Mr.  Van  Royen ;  Royena  lucida  in  flower,  as  large  as  a 
moderate  hawthorn  tree,  and  thought  to  be  very  handsome;  and  a 
singular  plant  from  the  Cape,  supposed  to  be  an  echites,  with  a 
large  tuberous  root  raised  high  above  the  surface  of  the  ground,  twTo 
or  three  weak  stems  a  foot  high,  and  large  dark  brown  flowers.  In 
the  university  library  is  Rauwolf's  Herbarium,  which  is  very  mag- 
nificent, and  the  plants  well  preserved;  also  Boccone's  Herbarium 
of  the  plants  described  in  his  Fasciculus  Plantarum,  published  by 
Morison  at  Oxford,  in  1674;  these  specimens  are  very  poor:  Her- 
man's Collection  of  Ceylon  Plants  is  also  here,  which  are  a  part 
of  the  celebrated  Herbarium,  the  rest  of  which  is  at  Copenhagen; 
also  a  volume  of  West  India  plants,  belonging  to  Herman,  which 
are  very  scare  in  Holland,  and  a  fine  collection  of  mathematical 
instruments;  amongst  other  things,  a  most  pure  and  brilliant  prism 
of  Brazil  pebble,  and  a  two-inch  cube  of  Iceland  refracting  spar, 
perfectly  clear  and  free  from  blemish. 

In  a  very  long  apartment  in  the  gallery  there  are  some  busts 
and  statues  in  tolerable  preservation,  but  of  no  great  value;  the 
best  are  busts  of  Nero  and  Agrippina,  Servilius  and  a  Bacchus: 
they  were  presented  to  the  university  by  a  citizen  of  the  town.  I 
was  shown  into  a  small  room  containing  some  stuffed  birds  and 
beasts,  which  were  in  very  poor  condition.  The  theatre  of  anatomy 
is  very  near  the  botanic  garden ;  in  it  is  a  valuable  collection  of 
anatomical  and  pathological  subjects.  This  hall  is  well  worthy  the 
notice  of  the  traveller,  as  well  for  its  valuable  contents,  as  for  hav- 
ing furnished  Europe  with  some  of  its  best  physicians.  This 
library  is  celebrated  throughout  Europe,  for  the  many  valuable 
specimens  of  oriental  literature  with  which  it  abounds,  exclusive 

R 


130       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

of  the  books  before  mentioned.  Golius,  upon  his  return  from 
the  East,  and  who  afterwards  filled  with  great  reputation  the 
Arabic  professorship  of  the  university,  has  enriched  this  valuable 
depositary  of  learning  with  many  Arabic,  Turkish,  Chaldean,  and 
Persian  manuscripts.  I  have  before  mentioned  that  Joseph  Scali- 
ger  bequeathed  his  valuable  collection  of  Hebrew  books  to  it. 
The  precious  manuscripts  contained  here  are  said  to  exceed  eight 
thousand.  Since  the  last  war  commenced,  no  addition  of  English 
publications  has  been  made  to  this  library,  which  contains  the 
Transactions  of  the  Royal  and  Antiquarian  Societies  of  London, 
and  the  Histories  of  Gibbon,  Robertson,  and  Hume.  To  suffer  an 
inimical  disposition  between  two  countries  to  erect  a  barrier  be- 
tween intellectual  communication  is  giving  additional  barbarism 
to  the  ferocity  of  war.  To  the  honour  of  England  and  France,  they 
have  never  permitted  those  melancholy  conflicts  which  have  so 
long,  and  so  fatally  inflamed  the  one  against  the  other,  to  check 
the  free  and  liberal  interchange  of  philosophical  discovery  and 
literary  investigation.  Whilst  the  respective  governments  have 
been  engaged  in  reciprocal  schemes  of  vengeance,  the  learned 
societies  of  both  countries  have  communed  with  each  other  in  the 
language  of  peace  and  liberality. 

The  king  of  Spain  has  presented  this  library  with  some  mag- 
nificent folios,  descriptive  of  the  antiquities  of  Herculaneum.  The 
books  are  principally  bound  in  fine  white  parchment,  and  are 
gilded  and  decorated  with  considerable  taste  and  splendor.  There 
are  in  this  room  several  excellent  portraits  of  eminent  men  who 
have  belonged  to  the  university,  or  who  have  been  benefactors  to 
it:  the  head  of  that  elegant  and  voluptuous  poet  Johannes  Secun- 
dus,  who  died  at  the  age  of  twenty -five,  distinguishable  for  its  dark 
penetrating  eyes,  adust  complexion,  and  black  hair  and  beard,  is 
very  fine.  There  are  also  very  interesting  portraits  of  Janus  Douse, 
who  during  the  seige  of  Leyden  exhibited  the  most  admirable 
heroism,  by  which  he  acquired  the  applause  of  the  Prince  of  Orange 
and  the  government  of  the  town :  this  hero  shone  in  letters  as  well 
as  arms;  also  of  Erasmus  at  different  stages  of  his  life;  of  Hugo 
Donellus,  painted  after  death,  in  which  all  the  appearances   of 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  13] 

mortality  are  finely  imitated  with  ghastly  precision ;  also  of  Daniel 
Heinsius,  and  a  miniature  of  Sir  Thomas  More,  by  Hans  Holbein, 
There  are  also  several  medallion  likenesses  of  distinguished  En- 
glishmen carved  in  ivory,  such  as  Milton,  Marvel,  Ludlow,  Wick- 
liffe,  Harrington,  &c.  Sec.  executed  by  an  English  refugee,  who 
took  shelter  in  Holland  after  the  overthrow  of  the  Duke  of  Mon- 
mouth's rebellion.  There  is  a  museum  of  natural  history,  princi- 
pally collected  by  Professor  Allemand,  containing  some  fine  ores, 
corals,  and  pebbles,  and  also  some  rare  quadrupeds  and  amphibia: 
also  a  young  ostrich  in  the  egg ;  the  nautilus  with  the  animal  in  it, 
and  some  papilios.  In  the  anatomical  theatre  are  the  valuable  pre- 
parations of  Albinus,  amongst  them  are  specimens  of  the  progress 
of  ossification  in  the  foetus.  This  university  has  also  to  boast  of  the 
works  of  Mr.  Pestel,  professor  of  jurisprudence,  for  his  admirable 
work,  entitled  Fundamenta  Jurisprudentias  Naturalis.  The  consti- 
tutional regulations  of  this  university  are  conceived  in  a  noble 
spirit  of  liberality.  No  offensive  obligations,  no  religious  tests,  no 
repulsive  oaths,  are  imposed,  no  insidious  attempts  at  proselytism 
are  exercised.  Youths  of  every  religious  persuasion  mingle  to- 
gether in  perfect  harmony ;  like  brothers  they  aggregate  to  study, 
and  not  to  quarrel  about  modes  of  faith.  Whatever  may  be  the 
rank  of  the  student,  or  from  whatever  country  he  may  come,  he 
speedily  adopts  the  decent,  gentle,  and  frugal  manners  and  habits 
of  the  inhabitants.  The  long  war  and  revolution  in  this  country 
have  naturally  withdrawn  a  great  number  of  young  men  of  rank 
and  fortune  from  this  seminary,  and  prevented  others  from  enter- 
ing it.  The  students  do  not  now  exceed  two  hundred.  A  consi- 
derable number  of  English  students,  in  a  period  of  peace,  used  to 
flock  to  this  illustrious  academy,  which,  as  well  as  the  beauty, 
M-anquillity,  cleanliness,  and  salubrity  of  the  city  in  which  it  stands, 
md  the  cheapness  and  perfect  freedom  of  living,  and  the  charms 
of  the  surrounding  country,  holds  out  the  strongest  attractions  to 
the  recluse  and  studious.  The  examinations  for  academical  honours 
are  more  severe  than  even  for  those  of  Trinity  College  Dublin. 

Amongst  other  circumstances  which  have  concurred  to  crown 
Leyden  with  celebrity,  I  must  not  omit  to  relate  that  its  peigh- 


132  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

bourhood  gave  birth  to  Rembrandt  in  1606.  His  real  name  was 
Gerretz,  but  he  is  known  by  the  name  of  Van  Ryn,  an  appellation 
given  to  him  from  the  place  where  he  spent  the  youthful  part  of 
his  life,  on  the  borders  of  the  Rhine.  This  illustrious  artist  is  one 
amongst  the  many  instances  which  might  be  produced,  of  the  ef- 
fect of  accidental  circumstances  in  early  life  determining  the  cha- 
racter and  formation  of  genius;  he  derived  his  peculiarity  of  shade 
from  the  circumstance  of  his  father's  mill  receiving  light  from  an 
aperture  at  the  top,  which,  and  not  his  studying  under  Jacob  Pinas, 
gradually  led  him  to  use  that  breadth  of  shade  for  which  he  was  so 
eminently  distinguished.  At  a  very  early  period  he  exhibited  strong 
proofs  of  genius  for  painting,  and  by  his  productions  astonished  his 
master  Jacques  Van  Zwanenburg,  in  whose  school  he  continued 
three  years.  His  father's  mill,  and  the  circumjacent  country,  first 
attracted  his  attention,  which,  with  the  heavy  living  objects  with 
Whom  he  associated,  so  completely  possessed  his  mind,  that  he 
seldom  selected  any  others  which  were  beautiful  or  graceful. 
When  very  young,  one  of  his  friends  prevailed  upon  him  to  go  to 
Amsterdam,  and  offer  one  of  his  pictures  for  sale,  which  he  did, 
and  sold  it  to  a  very  able  judge  of  genius  in  his  line  for  one  hun- 
dred florins.  He  went  on  foot  with  the  treasure  under  his  arm,  but 
returned  in  a  carriage.  This  trifling  circumstance  induced  him  to 
settle  in  that  city,  where  he  soon  became  solicited  by  persons  of 
the  first  distinction  for  his  works.  Here,  from  the  number  of  pu- 
pils who  flocked  to  him,  and  the  great  demand  for  his  paintings, 
wealth  poured  in  upon  him  copiously.  For  instructing  each  of  his 
pupils  he  received  one  hundred  florins  per  annum,  but  becoming 
avaricious  as  he  became  wealthy,  he  sold  a  great  number  of  copies 
made  by  them  for  his  own  pictures,  in  which  he  deceived  the  pur- 
chaser by  retouching  several  parts.  The  swindling  tricks  and  stra- 
tagems by  which  this  great  artist  used  to  raise  money,  threwr  a 
deeper  breadth  of  shade  than  his  pencil  ever  cast  upon  his  can- 
vass, over  the  brighter  parts  of  his  genius.  It  is  related  that  one 
of  his  pupils,  well  knowing  his  rapacious  disposition,  painted 
a  number  of  coins  upon  some  cards  which  he  laid  upon  his  mas* 
ter's  table  when  he  was  from  home;  on  his  return,  he  ran  eagerly 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  133 

to  seize  them  and  recovered  the  vexation  of  his  disappointment, 
only  by  admiring  the  dexterity  of  the  deception. 

Rembrandt  was  a  great  humourist.  One  day  when  he  was  paint- 
ing a  large  family  picture,  and  one  of  the  subjects  was  actually 
sitting  to  him,  his  servant  informed  him  of  the  death  of  his  favour- 
ite monkey,  which  he  felt  so  sensibly,  and  whimsically,  that  he 
immediately  ordered  the  dead  body  to  be  brought  in,  and  drew  it 
as  one  of  the  group,  which  he  would  not  expunge,  although  the 
family  refused  to  pay  for  the  picture  before  it  was  effaced.  His 
finest  historical  pictures  are  those  of  Ahasuerus,  Esther  and  Ha- 
inan; the  woman  taken  in  adultery 5  and  St.  John  preaching  in  the 
wilderness,  which  are  said  to  be  touched  with  inexpressible  fire 
and  spirit.  The  imagination  of  this  great  artist  was  lively  and  ac- 
tive, and  his  invention  very  fertile:  he  had  a  large  collection  of  old 
draperies,  armour,  weapons,  and  turbans,  which  he  used  sportively 
to  call  his  antiques;  these  he  preferred  to  any  of  the  works  of  the 
Grecian  artists.  He  had  also  a  great  number  of  the  finest  Italian 
prints,  drawings,  and  designs,  many  of  them  taken  from  the  an- 
tiques, which  afforded  him  gratification,  but  do  not  appear  to  have 
ameliorated  his  taste.  His  portraits  are  excellent,  and  resemble 
life  as  near  to  perfection  as  possible,  but  his  airs  and  attitudes  are 
defective  of  grace  and  dignity.  Many  of  his  heads  display  such 
minute  exactness,  that  even  the  hairs  of  the  beard,  and  the  wrin- 
kles of  old  age,  are  given  with  the  most  exquisite  fidelity.  The 
portrait  appears  to  breathe  upon  the  canvass.  It  is  a  curious  cir- 
cumstance that  his  lights  were  produced  by  a  colour  unusually 
thick,  more  resembling  modeling  than  painting,  but  every  tint 
was  so  judiciously  placed,  that  it  remained  on  the  canvass  in  full 
freshness,  beauty, and  lustre.  The  etchings  of  Rembrandt  are  great- 
ly admired,  and  are  regarded  as  prime  treasures  in  the  cabinets  of 
the  curious  in  most  parts  of  Europe:  these  productions  rival  his 
paintings,  every  stroke  of  the  graver  exhibits  expression  and  life: 
his  genuine  works  are  rarely  to  be  met  with,  but  whenever  they 
are  presented  for  sale,  they  produce  incredible  prices.  In  the 
splendid  collection  of  Mr.  Desenfans,  are  some  exquisite  pro- 
ductions of  this  and  other  Flemish  masters;  this  collection  is. 


134  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

upon  the  whole,  the  best  in  England,  and  is  exhibited  to  persons 
of  respectability,  without  cost,  by  its  liberal  possessor. 

Amongst  the  curiosities  of  Leyden,  I  did  not  take  the  trouble 
of  seeing  the  shopboard  of  the  celebated  John  of  Leyden,  a  cha- 
racter distinguishable  for  its  ambition,  enterprize,  and  ferocity: 
those  who  have  furnished  us  with  an  account  of  this  aspiring 
monster,  relate  that  his  name  was  Bucold  ;  that  from  being  the  son 
of  a  taylor,  and  brought  up  to  his  father's  trade,  he  resolved  upon 
becoming  a  king;  that  accordingly  he  first  tasted  of  royalty  on 
the  board  of  a  strolling  company  of  comedians  in  the  character 
of  a  prince,  which  affording  him  much  gratification,  he  connected 
himself  with  .a  baker  of  Amsterdam,  a  fanatic,  who  called  himself 
God's  vicegerent  upon  the  earth,  and  declared  that  he  was  sent  to 
illuminate  the  world.  This  fellow,  previous  to  his  becoming  the 
associate  of  John  of  Leyden,  assumed  the  name  of  Thomas  Mun- 
ster,  and  impregnated  a  number  of  Germans  with  his  religious 
phrenzy,  which  aimed  at  the  demolition  of  the  doctrine  of  Luther : 
this  fanatic  faction  spread  with  incredible  celerity,  until  the  Elector 
of  Saxony,  the  Landgrave  of  Hesse,  and  the  duke  of  Brunswick, 
resolved  upon  drawing  the  sword  against  these  furious  zealots. 
The  prophet  Minister  was  taken  prisoner  and  lost  his  head ;  but 
soon  after,  as  if  inspirited  by  this  blow,  John  of  Leyden  took  Munster 
at  the  head  of  a  troop  of  sanguinary  bigots,  and  ordered  himself  to  be 
proclaimed  king.  After  this  ceremony  was  performed  he  committed 
the  most  horrible  outrages:  in  the  name  of  God,  he  battered 
down  all  the  churches,  and  changed  the  religion  of  the  country; 
he  recommended  polygamy,  and  kept  a  seraglio  of  sixteen  wives., 
one  of  whom  endeavoured  to  assassinate  the  Bishop  of  Waldeck, 
who  fortunately  seized  the  ponrard  from  her  hand,  and  plunged 
it  into  her  own  bosom ;  and  another,  John  himself  put  to  death 
for  hesitation  in  complying  with  his  wishes.  When  he  appeared 
in  the  streets  of  Munster,  he  wore  a  crown  upon  his  head,  carried 
a  sword  in  one  hand,  and  the  New  Testament  in  the  other,  and 
was  preceded  on  horseback  by  a  group  of  dancing  boys,  whilst  the 
sides  were  by  his  mandates,  crowded  with  the  prostrate  terrified 
citizens,  who  wTere  punished  with  instant  death  if  they  stood,  or 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  135 

2-e.mained  covered  in  his  presence.  The  reign  of  this  petty  tyrant 
was  brief:  the  Bishop  of  Munster  besieged  the  town,  which  suffer- 
ed nearly  the  same  horrors  which  I  have  described  to  have  occur- 
red at  Leyden,  when  the  Spaniards  sat  down  before  it;  the  living- 
fed  upon  the  dead,  and  a  look  that  intimated  a  wish  to  surrender 
Avas  punished  with  instant  death.  The  miseries  which  surrounded 
him,  served  only  to  inflame  the  fanatical  spirit  of  the  monster;  at 
last,  however,  the  town  was  taken  by  surprise,  and  John  and  the 
ministers  of  his  bloody  ambition  were  conducted  before  the  victo- 
rious prelate,  to  whom,  after  being  charged  with  the  enormities 
which  he  had  committed,  he  is  said  to  have  replied,  with  the  craft 
of  a  coward,  in  the  following  manner:  "  The  possession  of  my 
person  has  cost  you  much  money  and  much  blood,  my  death  will 
be  a  loss  to  you,  my  life  may  become  a  source  of  profit  to  you, 
put  me  in  an  iron  cage,  set  a  price  upon  the  exhibition  of  me,  and 
send  me  through  Europe,  thus  will  you  in  the  end  be  the  gainer 
by  me."  The  bishop  saw  through  his  object  which  was  the  das- 
tard preservation  of  his  forfeited  life,  and  accordingly  ordered  him 
to  be  put  to  death  with  a  refinement  of  cruelty,  at  the  relation  0.1 
which  human  nature  sickens,  abhorred  as  the  victim  was.  Two 
executioners  tore  his  flesh  slowly  asunder  with  red  hot  pincers, 
and  after  the  mitred  conqueror  and  his  followers  had  glutted  their 
eyes  with  his  writhings,  and  their  ears  with  his  screams,  a  javelin 
pierced  his  heart,  and  his  mangled  body  was  thrown  into  a  cage, 
and  exposed  to  the  birds  of  the  air  from  the  steeple  of  St.  Lam- 
bert's church.  It  has  been  observed  by  some  travellers,  that  the 
Dutch  are  much  given  to  a  tremulous  motion  of  the  head.  I  saw 
no  instance  of  this  national  trait  except,  where  I  expected  to  find 
it,  among  old  and  paralytic  persons.  The  practice  of  bowing  is 
not  confined  to  the  Dutchman,  though  adduced  against  him  as  a 
sort  of  blemish  by  every  Englishman  who  extends  his  rambles  no 
farther  than  Holland:  throughout  Germany  the  same  courtesy  is 
displayed,  and  even  among  the  common  Russian  boors  the  practice 
of  exchanging  bows  is  quite  common. 

I  was  not  much  gratified  with  the  church  of  St.  Peter,  the 
principal  one  in  the  city;  it  is  a  large  ponderous  building,  in  the 


136  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

worst  style  of  gothic  architecture.  In  this  structure  the  English  and 
Russian  soldiers  were  confined  when  taken  prisoners  at  Alkmaar. 
The  poor  Russians,  who  expected  no  quarter,  looked  upon  the 
brass  chandeliers  which  are  suspended  in  the  body  of  the  church, 
as  the  instruments  of  execution,  to  each  of  which  they  thought  of 
being  fastened  by  the  neck.  The  Russians,  in  their  first  campaigns 
with  the  French,  entertained  the  same  apprehension,  and  were 
most  agreeably  astonished  on  one  occasion,  which  presented  a 
memorable  display  of  French  sagacity,  to  find  that,  instead  of  be- 
ing shot  or  guillotined,  they  were  presented  with  new  clothing  of 
the  Russian  uniform,  and  offered  their  liberty. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HQLLAND.  137 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  PRESS  OF  LEYDEN ITS    STAPLE    TRADE ANECDOTES    OF 

GERARD     DOUW OF  JEAN  STEEN HIS  SINGULAR    PAINTING 

OF    THE    DELUGE ANECDOTES     OF    FRANCIS    MIERES THE 

PICTORIAL    CONTEST ANECDOTE    OF    VANDERWELDE THE 

VILLAGE  OF   RHYNSBURG... .SINGULAR  RELIGIOUS  ASSOCIATION 

A  CURIOUS    CUSTOM EXPLOSION    AT    LEYDEN CONDUCT 

OF     THE     KING HAERLEM ITS    CELEBRATED    ORGAN    DE- 
SCRIBED  ANECDOTE     OF       HANDEL MR.       HENRY        HOEE's 

HOUSE. 

IN  the  streets  of  Leyden  are  several  very  handsome  booksel- 
ler's shops,  particularly  Murray's  in  the  Braadstraat,  where  there 
are  many  vakiable  publications,  and  particularly  a  fine  collection 
of  the  classics,  which  are  sold  at  very  reasonable  prices.  The  press 
of  Leyden,  in  the  time  of  Elzevirs,  presented  some  of  the  most 
elegant  specimens  of  typography,  in  the  many  correct  and  beau- 
tiful editions  which  they  have  given  of  the  most  renowned  authors 
of  antiquity.  In  beauty,  variety,  and  profusion,  the  Leyden  press 
rivalled,  and  in  many  instances  surpassed,  that  of  the  Hague  and 
Amsterdam;  but  since  the  period  of  the  above  bibliopolists,  it  has 
gradually  decayed.  It  may  be  easily  imagined,  that  with  the  change 
which  has  taken  place  in  the  political  relations  of  Holland,  the 
liberty  of  the  press  is  not  what  it  used  to  be  at  Leyden,  which 
was  once  celebrated  for  its  Gazette,  a  rival  in  reputation  of  that  of 
Brussels:  the  former  was  distinguished  for  its  partiality  to  the 
Stadtholder,  and  his  well  known  attachments  to  the  English  cabi- 
net; and  the  latter  for  supporting  the  true  interests  of  the  country. 
The  editors  and  proprietors  of  the  Leyden  Gazette  fled  with  pre- 
cipitation, on  the  irruption  of  the  French  into  Holland;  and  the 
paper  which  is  now  issued  from  Leyden,  is  of  course  the  organ  of 
the  new  government,  and  but  little  enlivened  with  political  dis- 
cussion. 

S 


138  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

The  staple  trade  of  Leyden,  the  woollen  manufactory,  has  suf- 
fered very  severely  from  the  establishment  of  extensive  looms  in 
various  parts  of  Germany,  from  the  last  and  present  war  with 
England,  and  from  the  superiority  of  the  manufactures  of  York- 
shire, which  are  in  such  high  estimation  in  America  and  Asia, 
that  Dutch  merchants  trading  to  those  countries,  found  it  more 
advantageous  to  send  out  English  cloths.  The  coarse  cloths  of 
Holland  had  formerly  a  brisk  market  amongst  the  East  and  West 
India  Companies:  but  from  the  above  cause  thousands  of  manufac- 
turers have  been  obliged  to  renounce  their  looms,  and  divert  their 
skill  and  industry  to  other  sources  of  support;  and  in  all  human 
probability  the  woollen  manufactures  of  Leyden  will  never  revive. 

Before  I  quit  this  celebrated  city,  I  cannot  help  mentioning  that, 
in  addition  to  the  illustrious  artists  before-mentioned,  it  gave  birth 
to  Gerard  Douw,  who  was  born  here  in  161 3,  and  entered  at  the 
early  age  of  fifteen  into  the  school  of  Rembrandt,  with  whom  he 
continued  three  years,  and  from  whom  he  obtained  the  true  prin- 
ciples of  colouring;  his  pictures  are  generally  small,  and  remark- 
able for  their  wonderful  brilliancy,  delicacy,  transparency,  and  ex- 
quisite high  finishing.  Sandrart  relates  a  curious  anecdote  of  the 
laborious  assiduity  which  he  displayed.  Being  with  Balnboccio  in 
the  painting-room  of  Gerard  Douw,  they  were  enraptured  with 
the  wonderful  minuteness  of  a  picture  which  Douw  was  then 
painting,  and  were  particularly  struck  with  the  finishing  of  a 
broom,  and  could  not  refrain  expressing  their  surprise  at  the 
amazing  neatness  displayed  in  so  minute  an  object;  upon  which 
Douw  informed  them  that  he  should  spend  three  more  days  upon 
that  very  broom  before  he  could  complete  it  to  his  satisfaction. 
The  same  author  also  relates,  that  in  a  family  picture  of  a  Mrs. 
Spiering,  Douw  occupied  five  days  in  finishing  one  of  the  hands' 
that  leaned  over  an  arm-chair.  This  disposition  to  elaborate  ex- 
ecution, in  which  he  far  surpassed  every  other  Flemish  master, 
s.o  alarmed  a  great  number  of  persons,  that  they  had  not  patience 
to  sit  to  him,  and  hence  he  chiefly  applied  his  fine  powers  in  works 
of  fancy,  in  which  he  could  introduce  objects  of  still-life,  and  gra- 
tify his  inclination  in  the  choice  of  his  time.    A  noble  instance  is 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  139 

related  Qf  the  liberality  of  his  great  patron,  Mr.  Spiering,  the 
husband  of  the  lady  above-mentioned,  resident  of  the  king  of 
Sweden  at  the  Hague,  namely,  that  he  allowed  him  a  thousand 
guilders  a  year,  with  no  other  stipulation  than  that  Douw  should 
give  his  benefactor  the  preference  of  purchasing  every  picture  he 
painted,  for  which  he  always  paid  him  to  the  full  extent  of  his 
demand.  He  lived  to  a  great  age,  but  his  sight  was  so  affected  by 
the  minuteness  of  his  performances,  that  at  the  age  of  thirty  he 
was  obliged  to  use  spectacles.  The  finest  picture  from  his  hands 
considerably  exceeded  his  usual  size,  being  three  feet  high  by  two 
feet  six  inches  broad  within  the  frame:  this  matchless  piece  of  art 
represents  two  rooms ;  in  the  first  there  appears  a  very  curious 
piece  of  tapestry,  forming  the  separation  of  the  apartments,  in 
which  there  is  a  very  pretty-figure  of  a  woman  with  a  child  at  her 
breast;  at  her  side  is  a  cradle,  and  a  table  covered  with  tapestry, 
on  which  is  placed  a  gilt  lamp  and  some  pieces  of  still-life;  in  the 
second  apartment  is  a  surgeon's  shop,  with  a  countryman  under- 
going an  operation,  and  a  woman  standing  by  him  with  several 
utensils  :  the  folding-doors  show  on  one  side  a  study,  and  a  man 
making  a  pen  by  candlelight,  and  on  the  other  side,  a  school  with 
boys  writing,  and  sitting  at  different  tables,  which  parts  are  light- 
ed in  a  most  charming  and  astonishing  manner,  so  that  every  fea- 
ture and  character  of  countenance  is  distinctly,  and  most  intelligi- 
bly delineated.  Incredible  sums  have  been  given,  and  still  continue 
to  be  given  for  the  works  of  this  master,  in  his  own  country,  and 
in  every  polite  part  of  Europe  where  they  are  to  be  found.  Some 
of  his  best  works  are  now  in  the  royal  gallery  at  Dresden. 

I  must  not  omit  that  comical,  dissipated  humourist  and  happy 
artist,  Jan  Steen,  who  was  born  here  in  1636,  whose  wit  and  drollery 
were  only  surpassed  by  his  wonderful  powers  in  painting,  in  which 
such  was  his  astonishing  faculty,  that  he  seemed  to  be  more  in- 
spired than  instructed,  for  he  kept  an  alehouse  for  a  considerable 
time,  from  the  cellars  of  which  he  drew  more  for  himself  than  for 
his  customers,  and  having  exhausted*  his  barrels,  he  replenished 
them  by  the  product  of  his  art,  to  which  he  never  devoted  him- 
self but  upon  such  occasions,  and  generally  discharged  the  bills  of 


140  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

the  brewers  and  wine  merchants  with  pictures.  Although  he 
might  have  lived  in  great  affluence  by  his  masterly  pencil,  he  was 
frequently  reduced  to  the  most  deplorable  penury  by  indolence 
and  dissipation ;  his  faces  alone  completely  indicated  the  rank  and 
condition  of  the  person  depicted.  Great  prices  are  now  given  for 
the  works  of  this  artist,  though  they  sold  for  small  sums  in  his 
life  time,  on  account  of  his  being  obliged  to  sell  upon  the  pressure 
of  necessity.  A  characteristic  anecdote  is  related  of  this  singular 
artist.  In  a  picture  of  the  crucifixion,  having  introduced  a  nume- 
rous group  of  figures,  consisting  of  monks,  old  women,  and  dogs, 
at  the  foot  of  the  cross,  he  was  asked  to  explain  the  reason  of  such 
an  assemblage;  to  which  he  replied,  "  the  clergy  and  the  old  wo? 
men  are  always  the  most  eager  in  their  inquiries,  when  any  thing 
curious  occurs."  Some  years  since,  another  instance  of  his  eccen- 
tric turn  of  mind  was  sold  for  a  considerable  sum  at  Amsterdam, 
viz.  a  painting  of  the  deluge,  which  he  had  delineated  by  introdu- 
cing a  large  Dutch  cheese,  with  the  word  Leyden  inscribed  upon 
it,  floating  in  the  centre  of  a  sheet  of  water,  which,  he  said,  would 
incontestably  prove  that  all  the  world  was  drowned.  The  name  of 
Jan  Steen  naturally  introduces  that  of  his  great  friend  Francis 
Mieres,  who  was  born  here  in  1635,  and  was  a  pupil  of  Gerard 
Douw,  who,  from  the  rapid  progress  he  made  in  his  studies,  used 
to  call  him  the  Prince  of  his  Disciples:  in  rich  transparency,  an 
unusual  sweetness  of  colouring,  and  an  elaborate  but  delicate 
touch,  he  nearly  approached  his  illustrious  master.  Mieres  was 
generally  paid  a  ducat  an  hour  for  his  works,  and  the  Grand  Duke 
of  Tuscany  paid  him  no  less  than  a  thousand  rix  dollars  for  one 
picture.  Unfortunately  for  this  artist,  he  conceived  an  uncommon 
friendship  for  the  drunken,  droll  Jan  Steen,  which  frequently  in- 
volved him  in  inconvenience,  and  disgrace.  An  anecdote  is  related 
of  Mieres,  in  consequence  of  this  association,  which  in  its  result 
did  much  honour  to  his  feelings ;  being  accustomed  to  pass  whole 
nights  with  his  friend  in  the  most  joyous  manner  at  a  tavern,  he 
was  returning  home  very  late  one  evening  from  Ins  company, 
when  he  fell  into  a  common  sewer,  which  had  been  left  open  in 
order  to  cleanse  it,  where  he  must  have  perished,  had  not  a  coblcr 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  ].41 

-uui  iiis  wife,  who  were  in  a  neighbouring  stall,  heard  his  cries,  and 
mstantly  ran  to  his  relief;  having  extricated  him,  although  they 
were  total  strangers  to  him,  they  took  care  of  him  for  the  night, 
and  treated  him  with  all  the  kindness  in  their  power:  the  next 
morning  their  guest  returned  to  liis  lodgings,  strongly  im- 
pressed with  the  humanity  and  hospitality  cf  his  new  friends? 
whom  he  resolved  to  reward  in  a  manner  worthy  of  their  conduct; 
and  accordingly  having  painted  a  picture  in  his  best  manner,  he 
returned  to  his  preservers  and  presented  them  with  it,  telling  them 
it  was  the  production  of  a  person  whose  life  they  had  preserved, 
and  directed  them  to  go  and  offer  it  to  his  friend  and  patron  Cor- 
nelius Plaats,  who  would  give  the  full  value  for  it.  The  woman, 
unacquainted  with  the  real  value  of  the  present,  expected  only  a 
moderate  gratuity  for  the  picture,  and  was  overwhelmed  with  sur- 
prise when  the  liberal  purchaser  paid  her  eight  hundred  florins  for 
it.  The  grand  Duke  of  Tuscany  offered  three  thousand  florins  for 
a  picture  of  Mieres,  representing  a  lady  fainting,  and  a  physician 
relieving  her.  Francis  Mieres  left  two  sons  and  a  grandson,  all  of 
whom  were  distinguished  artists.  John  Van  Goyen  the  father-in- 
law  of  Jan  Steen,  was  also  an  artist  of  great  celebrity:  he  painted 
a  great  number  of  pictures,  and  his  execution  was  marvellously 
rapid,  of  which  the  following  curious  anecdote  is  recorded  as  a 
memorable  instance:  Hoogstraten  relates  that  Van  Goyen,  Knip- 
bergen,  and  Parcelles,  had  agreed  each  to  paint  a  picture  in  one 
day,  in  the  presence  of  several  other  artists,  their  friends,  to  whose 
judgment  was  left  the  disposal  of  a  considerable  sum  of  money  sub- 
scribed for  that  purpose  by  the  contending  artists,  to  be  bestowed 
upon  the  person  who  produced  the  best  picture  within  that  period. 
As  soon  as  Van  Goyen  took  the  pencil,  without makingany  previous 
sketch,  he  first  laid  on  the  light  colour  of  the  sky,  then  he  rubbed  on 
several  different  shades  of  brown,  next  masses  of  light  on  the  fore- 
ground in  several  spots;  out  of  this  chaos,  he  produced  trees,  buil- 
dings, water,  distant  hills,  vessels  lying  before  a  sea-port,  and  boats 
filled  with  figures,  with  almost  magical  celerity,  and  exquisite 
spirit,  and  finished  the  whole  within  the  limited  time,  to  the  asto- 
nishment of  the  beholders.  Knipbergen  proceeded  with  his  work 


142  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

in  quite  a  different  manner,  for  instead  of  beginning  to  colour  his 
canvass  he  sketched  on  his  palette  the  design  he  had  formed  in 
his  imagination,  and  took  much  pains  to  give  it  all  imaginable 
correctness,  every  rock,  tree,  water-fall,  and  other  object,  was 
disposed  in  the  manner  it  was  intended  to  be  finished  in  the 
painting,  and  he  attempted  nothing  more  than  to  transfer  the 
sketch  upon  the  canvass ;  this  picture  was  also  finished  in  the  time, 
and  was  allowed  by  the  observers  to  possess  much  merit.  The 
method  observed  by  Parcelles  differed  from  both,  for  when  he  took 
up  his  palette  and  pencils,  he  sat  a  long  time  in  deep  meditation 
upon  his  subject,  and  having  arranged  his  thoughts,  he  executed 
Within  the  time  also,  a  sea-piece,  admirably  designed  and  delicately 
finished.  The  judges  were  unanimous  in  deciding  for  Parcelles, 
observing,  that  though  the  pictures  of  Van  Goyen  and  Knipbergen 
were  full  of  spirit,  taste,  and  good  colouring,  yet  in  the  picture  by 
Parcelles  there  was  equal  merit  as  well  in  the  handling  as  the 
colouring,  and  more  truth,  as  being  the  result  of  great  thought 
rind  judicious  premeditation.  William  Vandervelde,  the  celebrated 
marine  painter,  was  also  born  here  in  1610:  the  love  of  his  art 
induced  him  to  remove  with  his  family  to  England,  on  account  of 
the  superior  elegance  in  the  construction  of  British  ships;  and  he 
was  successively  patronised  by  King  Charles  II.  and  King  James 
II.  Such  was  his  enthusiasm,  that,  in  order  to  unite  fidelity  with 
grandeur  and  elegance  in  his  compositions,  he  would  boldly 
advance  in  a  small  light  vessel  into  the  very  heat  of  a  naval 
engagement,  and  make  his  sketches,  in  undaunted  tranquillity, 
whilst  the  balls  were  flying  about  him  in  all  directions.  Of  this 
bold  spirit  he  exhibited  two  very  memorable  instances,  before  he 
came  to  England;  one  was  in  the  severe  battle  between  the  Duke 
of  York  and  Admiral  Opdam,  in  -which  the  Dutch  admiral  and 
503  men  were  blown  up;  and  the  other,  in  that  great  battle,  which 
lasted  three  days,  between  Admiral  Monck  and  Admiral  de 
Ruyter,  during  which  engagements  Vandervelde  plied  between 
the  fleets,  so  that  he  was  enabled  to  represent  every  movement  of 
the  ships,  and  every  material  circumstance  of  the  action,  with  as- 
tonishing minuteness  and  truth.  There  were  formerly  some  good 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.       '  \4£ 

private  collections  of  paintings  in  this  city,  but  the  political  storms 
of  the  country  have  dispersed  them. 

About  a  mile  from  Leyden  there  is  a  very  valuable  collection 
by  some  of  the  most  distinguished  Dutch  and  Flemish  masters, 
belonging  to  Mr.  Gevers,  who  has  a  noble  mansion,  and  grounds 
very  tastefully  disposed;  and  who  upon  all  occasions  is  happy  to 
permit  strangers  to  visit  his  cabinet,  and  to  show  them  every  hos- 
pitality. 

Near  this  city,  in  the  village  of  Rhynsburg,  the  assembly  of  a 
very  singular  and  equally  liberal  religious  association  is  held,  the 
members  of  which  are  called  after  the  name  of  the  place,  Rhyns- 
burgians:  this 'meeting  was  established  by  three  peasants,  who 
were  brothers,  of  the  name  of  John,  Adrian,  and  Gilbert  Van  Code, 
who  to  an  excellent  and  profitable  acquaintance  with  farming, 
which  they  followed,  singularly  united  a  profound  knowledge  of 
languages,  for  which  they  were  so  celebrated,  that  Prince  Maurice, 
and  Monsieur  de  Maurier,  the  then  French  ambassador,  honoured 
them  with  several  visits,  and  conversed  with  them  in  Latin,  Greek, 
Italian,  and  French,  in  each  of  which  they  astonished  their  visitors 
by  their  fluency  and  pronunciation:  another  brother,  William, 
filled  the  professorship  of  the  oriental  languages  in  the  university 
of  Leyden.  In  consequence  of  the  churches  being  left  without  their 
pastors,  on  the  expulsion  of  the  remonstrant  clergy  in  the  year 
1619,  the  three  first-mentioned  brothers  determined  to  supply 
their  places,  and  undertook  to  explain  the  Scriptures:  they  set  an 
example  of  genuine  Christianity  which  has  been  rarely  displayed; 
and  they  taught  that  every  one  had  a  right  to  worship  God  accor- 
ding to  his  own  form  of  faith,  taking  the  Bible  for  his  guide.  This 
association  meet  every  Saturday,  for  the  purpose  of  digesting  the 
discourses  of  the  ensuing  Sunday,  when,  with  the  sincerest  humili- 
ty, one  of  the  fraternity  distributes  the  bread  and  wine.  After  the 
morning  duties  of  the  Sabbath  are  passed,  they  reassemble  in  the 
evening  to  return  thanks  to  the  Almighty  for  his  favours,  and  at  the 
same  time  particularize  the  instances  of  his  goodness.  On  Monday 
morning  they  part  to  attend  to  their  different  temporal  concerns, 
and  at  their  taking  leave,  solemnly  impress  upon  each  other  the 


144  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

sacred  obligation,  and  the  blissful  result  of  a  perseverance  in  the 
pious  course  which  they  have  hitherto  pursued.  Such  benevolent 
and  exalted  principles  attract  persons  of  various  persuasions  to  the 
meeting,  who  assist  in  its  solemnities,  and  partake  in  the  pure  spi- 
rit of  its  devotion.  The  religion  most  followed  previous  to  the  revo- 
lution, was  the  presbyterian  and  calvinistical;  before  the  revolution, 
none  but  presbyterians  were  admitted  into  any  office  or  post  under 
government,  except  in  the  army.  The  republic,  in  its  early  stages, 
displayed  its  wisdom  in  making  the  calvanistical  persuasion  predo- 
minant, for  the  country  at  that  period  was  too  poor  to  erect  mag- 
nificent temples  of  worship,  and  support  a  train  of  prelates  in  the 
splendor  bestowed  upon  them  in  other  countries,  which  were  more 
rich,  and  had  a  population  adequate  to  the  cultivation  of  the  soil. 
It  was  of  the  highest  consequence  to  Holland  to  encourage  popula- 
tion, and  they  could  not  more  effectually  do  it,  than  by  a  policy 
equally  generous  and  enlightened,  which  offered  an  asylum  to  all 
foreigners  persecuted  for  their  religion,  and  discouraged  all  monas- 
tic institutions. 

As  I  was  one  day  roving  in  this  city,  I  was  struck  with  the 
appearance  of  a  small  board  ornamented  with  a  considerable  quan- 
tity of  lace,  with  an  inscription  on  it,  fastened  to  a  house :  upon 
inquiry,  I  found  that  the  lady  of  the  mansion,  where  I  saw  it,  had 
lately  Iain  in,  and  was  then  much  indisposed,  and  that  it  was  the 
custom  of  the  country  to  expose  this  board,  which  contained  an 
account  of  the  state  of  the  invalid's  health,  for  the  satisfaction  of 
her  inquiring  friends,  who  were  by  this  excellent  plan  informed 
of  her  situation,  without  disturbing  her  by  knocking  at  the  door, 
and  by  personal  inquiries:  the  lace  I  found  was  never  displayed 
buc  in  lying  in  cases,  but  without  it,  this  sort  of  bulletin  is  fre- 
quently used  in  other  cases  of  indisposition  amongst  persons  of 
-    consequence. 

It  is  a  painful  task  not  to  be  able  to  close  my  account  of  this 
beautiful  and  celebrated  city,  without  lamenting  with  the  reader 
the  dreadful  accident  which  befel  it  on  the  12th  of  January  last, 
more  terrible  and  destructive  than  all  the  horrors  of  its  siege,  the 
intelligence  of  which  was  communicated  to  me  very  soon  after- 


Tour  through  Holland.  145 

wards  by  a  friend  in  Holland,  just  as  I  had  fairly  written  out  thus 
far  of  my  journal.  About  one  o'clock  of  that  day,  a  vessel  laden 
with  forty  thousand  pounds  weight  of  gunpowder  from  Amster- 
dam, destined  for  Delft,  and  then  lying  in  the  Rapenburg  canal,  by 
some  means  which  can  never  now  be  known,  took  fire  and  blew 
up  with  the  explosion  of  a  mighty  volcano,  by  which  many  hund- 
reds of  lives  were  lost,  and  a  great  portion  of  the  city  destroyed. 
The  king,  on  hearing  of  the  dreadful  catastrophe  was  sensibly  af- 
fected, repaired  to  the  city,  remained  all  the  following  night  in 
the  streets,  and  was  to  be  seen  wherever  his  presence  could  ani- 
mate the  survivors  to  stop  the  progress  of  the  flames,  to  clear  the 
rubbish  of  falling  buildings,  and  drag  from  under  the  ruins  those 
who  had  been  covered  by  them:  the  king  offered  the  palace  in 
the  wood  to  persons  of  respectability,  whose  habitations  had  been 
overthrown  by  the  shock,  until  they  could  secure  homes  to  repair 
to;  empowered  the  magistrates  of  this  devoted  city  to  make  a 
general  collection  throughout  the  whole  kingdom,  and  ordered 
100,000  guilders  to  be  paid  out  of  the  treasury  for  the  relief  of 
the  surviving  sufferers. 

I  quitted  Leyden  with  great  reluctance,  and  entered  on  board 
the  treckschuyt  for  Haarlem,  which  sets  off  every  two  hours  for 
that  town,  distant  from  Leyden  fifteen  miles.  The  canal  all  the 
way  is  broad  and  clear,  and  frequently  adorned  with  the  yellow- 
fringed  water-lily.  Nothing  could  be  more  beautiful  than  our  pas- 
sage. As  we  approached  Haarlem,  the  villas  and  gardens  which 
nearly  all  the  way  adorned  the  banks  of  the  tanal,  increased  in 
number,  beauty,  and  magnitude;  many  of  them  belong  to  the 
most  opulent  merchants  of  Amsterdam.  Haarlem  is  not  so  beau- 
tiful as  Leyden,  but  abounds  with  spacious  streets,  canals,  ave- 
nues, and  handsome  houses ;  it  is  about  four  miles  from  the  sea, 
and  fifteen  from  Amsterdam:  on  one  side  of  the  canal  is  the  Haar- 
lem meer,  or  lake,  the  spring  water  of  which  is  so  celebrated  all 
over  Europe  for  producing  the  most  brilliant  whitness  upon  the 
linens  bleached  here,  and  the  superior  property  of  which  cannot 
be  reached  by  any  chymical  process.  Haarlem  was  once  fortified, 

but  its  ramnarts  now  form  an  agreeable  promenade.    The  bleach- 

T 


146  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

eriesof  this  city  are  too  well  known  to  be  further  mentioned;  in  all 
his  wandering,  the  traveller  will  never  enjoy  the  luxury  of  snow- 
white  linen  in  such  perfection  as  at  Haarlem:  before  the  war, 
Scotch  and  Irish  linens  used  to  be  sent  here  to  be  bleached.  There 
was  a  considerable  manufacture  of  silks  and  camblets,  but  it  has 
experienced  a  great  decline,  and  the  principal  trade  is  bleaching 
threads  and  cambric;  the  inhabitants  are  calculated  at  thirty -two 
thousand.  The  cathedral,  which  is  said  to  be  the  largest  in  the 
kingdom,  though  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  of  Utrecht  greater, 
was  built  in  1472,  and  the  steeple,  which  is  very  handsome,  was 
added  in  1515.  To  inspect  the  internal  part  of  the  building,  I  was 
obliged  to  apply  to  one  of  the  principal  clergymen  belonging  to  it, 
who  resides  in  an  adjoining  house,  and  attended  by  a  lady-like 
looking  woman,  perhaps  his  wife,  or  house-keeper,  I  was  admitted 
into  this  venerable  pile,  where  the  first  object  that  struck  me  was 
the  celebrated  organ  supported  upon  pillars  of  porphyry:  this  in- 
strument is  said  to  be  the  finest  and  largest  in  the  world ;  it  occu- 
pies the  whole  west  end  of  the  nave.  For  a  ducat  paid  to  the  organist, 
and  two  florins  to  the  bellows  blower,  the  former  will  gratify  the 
traveller  by  playing  for  an  hour;  unfortunately  for  me  he  was  ab- 
sent in  the  country,  and  I  did  not  hear  the  celebrated  vox  humana, 
or  pipe,  which  most  admirably  imitates  the  human  voice.  Of  the 
magnitude  of  this  enormous  musical  pile,  the  reader  may  form 
some  conception  when  he  is  informed  that  it  contains  eight  thou- 
sand pipes,  some  of  which  are  thirty -eight  feet  in  length,  and  six- 
teen inches  in  diameter,  and  has  sixty-four  stops,  four  separations, 
two  shakes,  two  couplings,  and  twelve  bellows;  like  an  elephant, 
that  with  his  proboscis  can  either  pluck  a  violet  or  raise  a  tree  by 
its  roots,  the  notes  of  this  wonderful  instrument  can  swell  from 
the  softest  to  the  sublimest  sounds,  from  the  warbling  of  a  distant 
bird  to  the  awful  tone  of  thunder,  until  the  massy  building  trem- 
bles in  all  its  aisles.  On  every  Tuesday  and  Thursday,  a  voluntary 
is  played  upon  this  organ  from  twelve  till  one  o'clock,  when  the 
doors  of  the  cathedral  are  thrown  open.  Many  years  since  the  im- 
mortal Handel  played  upon  this  organ,  when  the  organist,  in 
amazement,  pronounced  him  to  be  an  angel,  or  the  devil.  Between 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  147 

two  of  the  columns  which  support  the  organ,  there  is  a  noble  em- 
blematical alto-relievo,  with  three  figures  as  large  as  life,  by  Xa» 
very,  representing  Gratitude,  assisted  by  Poetry  and  Music,  mak- 
ing an  offering  to  Piety,  and  a  Latin  inscription  purporting  that 
the  organ  was  erected  in  1738,  at  the  town's  expense,  the  same 
having  been  built  by  Christian  Muller  of  this  city.  This  is  the 
organ  which  the  good  people  of  Rotterdam  are  endeavouring  to 
rival:  the  cathedral,  like  the  other  churches,  is  crowded  with 
square  wooden  monuments,  painted  with  the  arms  of  the  deceased 
on  a  black  ground,  with  the  date  of  their  death  in  gold  letters,  but 
no  names:  in  the  wall  at  the  east  end  of  the  church,  a  cannon  ball 
is  exhibited,  which  was  fired  into  it  by  the  Spaniards  in  the  six- 
teenth century,  during  divine  service. 

The  walks  round  this  city  are  very  beautiful,  and  at  a  short 
distance  from  it  there  is  a  noble  wood,  in  which  is  a  fine  walk  of 
stately  elms,  nearly  three  miles  long,  abounding  with  beautiful 
scenery:  this  wood  is  a  rival  of  that  which  I  have  described  at  the 
Hague.  In  this  delightful  place  stands  the  mansion  of  Mr.  Henry 
Hope,  whose  family  has  been  long  known  for  its  loyalty  and  im- 
mense wealth:  it  is  said  to  have  cost  fifty  thousand  pounds.  Upon 
the  revolution  taking  place,  this  gentleman  was  obliged  to  seek  re- 
fuge in  England,  to  the  capital  of  which  he  had  previously  trans- 
ported in  safety  his  magnificent  collection  of  paintings. 

The  villa,  which  is  built  of  brick  stuccoed,  is  modern  and 
magnificent,  and  before  the  revolution  was  frequently  resorted  to 
by  the  Prince  of  Orange  and  his  family,  who  were  much  attached 
to  its  opulent  and  liberal  owner,  which  he  eminently  merited,  by 
having  rendered  them  many  important  services,  particularly  in 
1788,  when  it  was  unsafe  for  him  to  appear  on  the  exchange  of 
Amsterdam  without  military  protection.  As  the  pictures  were  re- 
moved, there  was  nothing  in  the  internal  part  of  the  mansion  wor- 
thy of  notice. 

Haarlem  and  its  environs  are  more  celebrated  than  any  other 
spot,  for  the  beautiful  flowers  which  it  produces,  the  soil  being  pe- 
culiarly propitious  to  their  production. 


148       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 


CHAPTER  XIV 


ANECDOTES    OF    LAWRENCE     COSTER ART    OF     PRINTING    HOW 

DISCOVERED. ...ITS  ORIGINALITY  DISPUTED. ...FEMALE  FORTI- 
TUDE AND  PRESENCE  OF  MIND. ...SIEGE  OF  HA ARLEM.. ..HEROIC 
CONDUCT  OF  THE  WOMEN.. ..BRIEF  ANECDOTE  OF  WOUVER- 
MANS....OF  BAMBOCCIO... .FATAL  EFFECTS  OF  SEVERE  CRITI- 
CISM....ANECDOTES  OF  NICHOLAS  BERGHEM  AND  HIS  TERMA- 
GANT WIFE. ...OF  RUYSDAAL... .ENORMOUS    SLUICES. ... APPROAC  H 

AMSTERDAM ITS   GENERAL     APPEARANCE A    SLEY....ERAS- 

MUS's  WHIMSICAL  DESCRIPTION  OF  THAT  CITY. ...THE  STADT- 
HOUSE... .SILENCE  REPRESENTED  AS  A  FEMALE. ...THE  TOWER.... 
CLOCKS,  SINGULAR  MODE  OF  STRIKING  THE  HOUR. 

Not  far  from  the  church,  the  spot  where  stood  the  house  of 
Lawrence  Coster,  who  lived  in  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century, 
the  celebrated  inventor  of  the  art  of  printing-,  is  shewn;  formerly 
there  was  a  statue  over  the  gate  where  he  lived,  within  this  inscrip- 
tion: 

MEMORI£ SACRUM 

TYPOGRAPHIA, 

ARS  ARTIUM  OPTIMA 

CONSERVATRIX, 

HIC   PRIMUM   INVENTA 

CIRCA  ANNUM  MCCCCXL. 

The  first  book  he  printed  is  kept  in  the  town  house,  in  a  silvej 
case  wrapt  up  in  silk,  and  is  always  shewn  with  great  caution,  as  a 
most  precious  relic  of  antiquity.  The  glory  of  this  transcendent 
discovery,  which  spread  light  and  civilization  over  the  world,  and 
formed  a  new  epoch  in  its  history,  was  for  a  long  time  disputed 
between  Haarlem,  Mayence,  and  Strasburg:  the  latter,  after  a  la- 
borious investigation,  has  renounced  her  pretensions,  and  the  gene- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  149 

ral  opinion  seems  to  bestow  the  palm  upon  the  first  city.  The  man- 
ner in  which  Coster  imbibed  the  first  impressions  of  this  divine  dis- 
covery, is  said  to  have  been  from  his  cutting  the  letters  of  his  name 
on  the  bark  of  a  tree,  and  afterwards  pressing  a  piece  of  paper  upon 
the  characters,  until  they  became  legible  upon  it,  which  induced 
him  to  continue  the  experiment,  by  engraving  other  letters  upon 
wood.  Those  early  principles  were  soon  diffused  through  France, 
with  considerable  improvements,  by  the  enterprizing  ability  of  the 
Etiennes;  by  the  learned  Manutius,  a  celebrated  Venetian  painter, 
and  the  inventor  of  Italian  characters,  through  Italy;  and  through 
the  Netherlands  by  Christopher  Plantin,  whose  printing-office  at 
Antwerp  was  one  of  the  principal  ornaments  of  the  town,  and  who 
was  distinguished  for  his  skill,  erudition,  and  prodigious  wealth, 
created  solely  by  a  successful  prosecution  of  his  important  bu- 
siness. 

Mayence  contests  the  honour  of  the  invention,  but  it  is  gene- 
rally believed  that  a  servant  of  Coster,  of  the  name  txf  Faustus, 
stole  the  types  of  his  master  on  a  Christmas-eve,  whilst  he  was  at- 
tending his  devotions  at  church,  and  fled  with  his  booty  to  May- 
ence. The  portrait  of  Coster  is  to  be  seen  in  most  of  the  book- 
sellers' shops  at  Haarlem,  and  in  other  principal  towns. 

A  memorable,  but  not  an  unusual  instance  of  affection,  and  of 
female  presence  of  mind,  occurred  in  this  city  many  years  since, 
at  a  spot  which  is  still  shown  with  no  little  degree  of  national  pride, 
whereon  an  ancient  castle  stood,  the  lord  of  which  was  severely 
pressed  by  the  burghers  of  the  town,  who  laid  siege  to  it,  on  ac- 
count of  his  tyrannical  conduct  towards  them:  driven  to  the  last 
extremity,  and  when  his  life  was  upon  the  point  of  paying  the  for- 
feit of  his  crimes,  his  lady  appeared  on  the  ramparts,  and  offered 
to  surrender,  provided  she  might  be  permitted  to  bring  out  as 
much  of  her  most  valuable  goods  as  she  could  carry  on  her  back; 
which  being  complied  with,  she  brought  her  husband  out  upon 
her  shoulders,  preserved  him  from  the  fury  of  the  troops,  and  gave 


150  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

up  to  them  possession  of  the  castle:  thinking  in  the  language  of 
Shakspeare, 

"  If  I  depart  from  thee,  I  cannot  live; 

"  And  in  thy  sight  to  die,  what  were  it  else, 

"  But  like  a  pleasant  slumber  in  thy  lap?" 

Henry  IV.  Part  2d.  Act.  4. 

History  informs  us,  that  Haarlem  presented  a  glorious  exam- 
ple of  resistance  to  the  Spanish  yoke,  so  heroically  imitated  two 
years  afterwards  at  Leyden,  which  experienced  a  better  fortune 
than  befel  the  wretched  inhabitants  of  the  former  city.  Whilst  the 
provinces  were  bravely  opposing  their  invaders,  a  long  and  me- 
morable siege  in  1573,  which  was  carried  on  against  Haarlem  by 
Frederic  of  Toledo,  the  son  of  the  sanguinary  Duke  of  Alva,  dur- 
ing which  the  female  inhabitants,  like  those  of  Leyden,  assisted 
the  garrison  in  their  duties,  underwent  every  privation,  faced  every 
horror,  and  rushed  to  certain  destruction  in  defence  of  the  town, 
with  an  alacrity  and  fortitude  which  have  rendered  them  immor- 
tal in  the  annals  of  their  country.  Those  heroines,  when  the  gar- 
rison refused  with  indignation  the  conditions  which  were  offered 
them  by  the  Spanish  general,  fought  with  unshaken  courage  by 
the  side  of  the  men,  in  their  desperate  sorties  against  the  besieging 
army,  and  in  their  fury  put  every  prisoner  to  death,  whom  they 
took  in  these  attacks.  This  unjustifiable  conduct,  and  the  derision 
which  from  the  ramparts  they  expressed  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
worship,  induced  the  Spaniards  to  retort  with  terrible  vengeance. 
In  consequence  of  a  correspondence  which  the  besieged  carried 
on  with  the  Prince  of  Orange  by  means  of  carrier  pigeons, 
being  discovered  by  the  Spaniards,  they  shot  every  pigeon 
which  came  within  the  reach  of  their  musketry,  which  rendered 
the  situation  of  the  garrison  hopeless,  and  they  at  length  surren- 
dered, on  condition  that  the  lives  of  the  soldiers  and  inhabitants 
should  be  spared,  to  which  Frederic  of  Toledo  consented,  entered 
the  town  at  the  head  of  his  victorious  troops,  and  in  cold  blood 
butchered  two  thousand  of  those  who  had  submitted  to  his  arms, 
and  trusted  to  his  honour. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  151 

When  it  is  considered,  that  at  this  period,  the  Spanish  monar- 
chy was  predominant  in  Europe,  that  its  armies  were  mighty, 
its  generals  experienced,  and  its  treasury  overflowing,  the  trium- 
phant prowess  which  the  Dutch  displayed  in  finally  driving  their 
powerful  invaders  back  to  their  own  frontiers,  will  render  the 
Dutch  name  illustrious  as  long  as  the  record  of  history  endures. 
The  Dutch  ladies  have  rivalled  in  fame  the  most  renowned  he- 
roines of  Greece  and  Rome.  The  Hollanders  treasure  up  these 
gallant  exploits  in  their  memories,  they  form  the  favourite  subjects 
of  their  songs,  and  the  old  and  the  young  recite  with  enthusiasm 
the  great  deeds  of  their  ancestors. 

The  Haarlem  lake  which  I  mentioned,  presented  a  very  bleak 
and  dismal  sheet  of  water  from  the  canal ;  it  is  about  fourteen  miles 
long,  and  about  the  same  number  broad,  is  said  to  be  above  six 
feet  deep,  and  lies  between  Leyden,  Amsterdam,  and  Haarlem: 
its  waters  are  slimy,  and  abound  with  eels,  some  of  which  are  of 
a  prodigious  size.  This  lake  can  have  no  charm  but  for  a  bleacher. 
The  fuel  used  here  is  Newcastle  coals  and  turf. 

Having  described  what  is  worthy  of  notice  at  Haarlem,  it  would 
be  indifference  indeed  to  an  art  which  I  worship,  were  I  to  quit  this 
city  without  briefly  adverting  to  some  of  the  principal  distinguish- 
ed artists  which  it  had  the  honour  of  giving  birth  to.  The  first  in 
chronological  order  was  Philip  Wouvermans,  who  was  born  at 
Haarlem  in  1620,  whose  sweetness  of  colouring,  correctness  of 
design,  beautiful  choice  of  scenery,  and  perfect  knowledge  of  the 
chiaro-scuro,  or  as  it  has  well  been  defined,  of  light  and  black,  have 
excited  the  admiration  and  applause  of  posterity:  the  subjects 
which  he  was  particularly  partial  to  were  huntings,  hawkings, 
encampments  of  armies,  farriers'  shops,  and  all  those  scenes  that 
admitted  of  his  introducing  horses,  which  he  painted  to  great  per- 
fection. Notwithstanding  his  transcendent  merit,  for  a  considerable 
period  he  met  with  no  encouragement,  and  encountered  many 
difficulties  which  greatly  depressed  his  spirits,  of  which  the  picture- 
merchants  knew  how  to  take  every  ungenerous  advantage :  at 
length  he  was  relieved  from  his  indigence  and  dependence,  by  the 
bounty  of  his  confessor,  who  seeing  his  uncommon  genuis,  was 


152  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

resolved  to  the  extent  of  his  power,  to  extricate  it  from  the  odious 
shackles  which  encumbered  it,  and  accordingly  advanced  him  six 
hundred  guilders,  by  a  judicious  application  of  which  he  eman- 
cipated himself  from  his  embarrassments :  he  now  doubled  the 
price  of  his  pictures,  and  was  enabled  to  give  his  daughter  a 
marriage  portion  of  twenty  thousand  guilders.  As  soon  as  he  was 
enabled  to  pay  his  confessor,  he  sent  the  sum  he  had  borrowed, 
accompanied  with  a  chef-d'oeuvre  of  his  works,  representing  his- 
holy  benefactor  in  the  character  of  St."  Hubert  kneeling  before  his 
horse.  All  connoisseurs  agree  that  this  picture  is  the  finest  he  ever 
painted.  Wouvermans  resided  in  the  Bakenessegragt,  a  short  dis- 
tance from  the  church.  The  depression  of  mind  which  his  early  dis- 
appointments excited,  never  quitted  this  great  artist:  a  few  hours 
before  he  died,  he  ordered  a  box  filled  with  his  studies  and  designs 
to  be  burned,  saying,  "  I  was  so  long  unrewarded  for  my  labours, 
that  I  wish  to  prevent  my  son  from  being  allured  by  these  designs, 
to  embrace  so  unpromising  and  uncertain  a  profession  as  mine." 

The  works  of  Wouvermans  and  Bamboccio  were  continually 
placed  in  competition  by  the  best  judges  of  art,  and  the  latter  hav- 
ing painted  a  picture  which  was  much  admired,  John  de  Wilt  pre- 
vailed upon  WTouvermans  to  paint  the  same  subject,  which  he  exe- 
cuted in  a  brilliant  manner :  these  pictures  were  soon  afterwards 
exhibited  together  to  the  public,  and  De  Wilt,  when  the  room 
in  which  they  were  placed,  was  exceedingly  crowded,  exclaimed 
in  a  loud  voice,  "  all  our  connoisseurs  seem  to  prefer  the  works  of 
those  painters  who  have  studied  at  Rome ;  but  behold  how  far  the 
work  of  Wouvermans  who  never  saw  Rome,  surpasses  the  pro- 
duction of  him  who  resided  there  several  years."  This  observation, 
which  was  received  with  general  approbation,  and  seemed  to  re- 
ceive the  fiat  of  the  company,  so  deeply  affected  the  delicate  spirits 
of  Bomboccio,  that  it  largely  contributed  to  hurry  him  to  his  grave. 

The  justly  celebrated  Nicholas  Berghem,  was  born  here  in 
1624,  and  studied  under  his  father,  an  inconsiderable  painter, 
whose  name  was  Van  Haarlem,  which  Berghem  exchanged  in  the 
following  whimsical  manner:  whilst  he  was  a  pupil  of  John  Van 
Goyen,  who  was  very  fond  of  him?  his  father  was  one  day  pursuing 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.       153 

him  in  the  street,  to  give  him  correction  for  some  peccadillo,  when 
his  master  seeing  his  father  gaining  upon  him  rapidly,  cried  out 
to  some  of  his  other  scholars,  Berg-hem  !  which  signifies  hide  him; 
from  which  circumstance  he  obtained  and  kept  that  name.  The  dis- 
tinguishing characteristics  of  Berghem's  pictures  are  breadth,  and 
just  distribution  of  the  lights,  the  grandeur  of  his  masses  of  light 
and  shadow,  the  natural  attitudes  of  his  figures  expressive  of  their 
several  characters,  the  just  gradation  of  his  distances,  the  brilliancy, 
harmony,  and  transparency  of  his  colouring,  the  correctness  and 
true  perspective  of  his  design,  and  the  elegance  of  his  composition, 
and  his  subjects  however  various  are  all  equally  admirable.  This 
great  man  had  the  calamity  and  the  infatuation  to  make  an  offer 
of  his  hand  and  heart  to  the  daughter  of  one  of  the  masters  under 
whom  he  studied,  when  he  left  Van  Goyen,  of  the  name  of  Willis, 
who  proved  to  be  one  of  the  most  clamorous  and  sordid  terma- 
gants that  Holland,  or  perhaps  any  other  country  ever  produced ; 
by  the  terror  of  her  tongue,  and  the  fury  of  her  manner,  she 
forced  him  to  slave  at  his  easel  without  intermission,  from  the 
break  to  the  departure  of  day,  and  frequently  all  night  long,  with- 
out permitting  him  to  have  the  disposal  of  a  single  guilder  with- 
out her  consent :  amidst  this  domestic  broil,  poor  Berghem  never 
lost  his  temper,  he  sung,  whilst  she  scolded,  as  if  he  thought 

And  do  you  tell  me  of  a  woman's  tongue, 
That  gives  not  half  so  great  a  blow  to  hear 
As  will  a  chesnut  in  a  farmer's  fire  ? 

Taming  of  the  Shrew ,  Act  I.  Scene  JS. 

In  this  increasing  state  of  internal  broil,  this  artist  produced 
some  of  the  finest  effusions  of  his  pencil:  he  was  singularly  curi- 
ous in  purchasing  the  finest  prints  and  designs  of  tbe  Italian  mas- 
ters, to  improve  his  own  taste,  which  after  his  death  sold  for  a 
large  sum  of  money:  by  his  indefatigable  industry,  he  produced 
an  amazing  number  of  pictures,  which  now  are  rarely  to  be  pur- 
chased, and  then  only  for  prodigious  prices. 

The  last  that  I  shall  mention  is  Jacob  Ruysdaal,  who  was  born 
here  in  1636,  and  was  the  bospm  friend  of  Berghem,  who  i.mpar- 

U 


154  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

ted  to  him  much  of  the  spirit  which  adorns  his  own  works.  No 
painter  ever  possessed  a  greater  share  of  public  admiration  than 
Ruysdaal,  a  reputation  which  has  remained  unimpaired  to  this 
hour.  His  works  are  distinguishable  by  a  natural  and  most  de- 
lightful tone  of  colour,  by  a  free,  light,  firm,  and  spirited  pencil, 
and  by  a  happy  choice  of  situation.  He  was  fond  of  introducing 
water  into  his  paintings,  and  he  was  equally  fortunate  in  repre- 
senting the  tumultuous  foam  of  the  torrent,  as  the  pellucid  tran- 
sparency of  the  canal.  Ruysdaal  was  cut  off  at  the  age  of  forty-five. 
Since  the  removal  of  Mr.  Hope's  collection,  there  is  no  private 
cabinet  of  pictures  in  or  near  Haarlem  worthy  the  attention  of  the 
traveller.  There  is,  however,  a  cabinet  of  natural  history,  said  to  be 
the  finest  in  Holland,  which  was  formed  by  Doctor  Van  Marum, 
whose  electrical  experiments  have  ascertained  that  the  death  of 
animals  is  coincident  with  the  cessation  of  irritability:  this  museum 
is  well  arranged  according  to  the  Linnean  system.  I  heard  of 
nothing  more  to  detain  the  traveller  at  Haarlem.  The  canal  from 
Haarlem  to  Amsterdam  is  clear  and  spacious,  and  nearly  straight 
for  the  first  four  miles,  at  the  lessening  end  of  which  the  former 
city  has  a  very  agreeable  appearance;  but  I  was  surprized  to  find 
so  very  few  country-houses,  and  scarcely  an  object  that  denoted 
our  approach  to  the  renowned  capital  of  the  kingdom,  and,  as  it  has 
been  aptly  called,  "  the  great  warehouse  of  the  world." 

About  half-way  we  changed  boats,  and  crossed  the  enormous 
sluices  which  protect  the  country  from  inundation  in  this  part:  we 
passed  over  the  waters  of  the  Haarlem  Meer  and  of  the  river  Y, 
so  called  from  its  form  resembling  that  letter,  being  a  branch  of 
the  Zuyder  Zee.  The  only  object  worthy  of  notice  thus  far  was  a 
large  stone  building,  called  the  Castle  Zwanenburg,  the  residence 
of  the  directors  of  the  dykes  and  water-works  of  Rhynland.  The 
cost  of  constructing  and  repairing  the  sluices  is  paid  out  of  the 
general  taxes.  The  country  here  is  four  or  five  feet  below  the  level 
of  the  river  Y,  which,  however,  is  rendered  perfectly  innocuous 
by  the  massy  and  prodigious  dams  before  mentioned,  the  construc- 
tion and  preservation  of  which  place  the  indefatigable  enterprise 
and  industry  of  the  Hollander  in  an  eminent  point  of  view. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  155 

I  reached  Amsterdam  just  after  the  gates  had  been  closed,  but 
my  commissaire  and  I  were  admitted  upon  paying  a  few  stivers. 
As  soon  as  we  had  entered,  every  object  denoted  a  vast,  populous, 
and  opulent  city :  every  street,  and  I  passed  through  a  great  num- 
ber before  I  reached  my  hotel,  was  tolerably  well  lighted,  but  in 
this  respect  infinitely  inferior  to  London.  At  length,  after  traver- 
sing the  city  about  two  miles  and  a  half,  I  reached  the  principal 
hotel,  called  Amsterdam  Wappen,  or  the  Arms  of  Amsterdam, 
which,  in  point  of  magnitude  and  accommodation,  may  vie  with 
the  first  hotels  in  our  own  metropolis.  Here,  after  an  excellent 
supper  of  fish,  which  the  Dutch  dress  to  admiration,  and  some 
porter,  which  was  an  excellent  imitation  of  that  description  of  be- 
verage for  which  London  is  so  justly  renowned,  I  found  a  sopha 
bed  prepared  for  me,  with  curtains  pendent  from  the  centre,  in 
the  French  taste,  which  much  prevails  in  the  internal  arrange- 
ment of  the  houses  of  this  great  eity. 

In  the  morning  I  was  awakened  by  the  chimes  of  some  of  the 
churches,  which  in  softness  and  sweetness  resembled  the  distant 
sounds  of  a  harp.  Although  it  was  seven  o'clock,  upon  looking 
from  the  window,  I  heard  the  hum  and  beheld  the  bustle  of  busi- 
ness which  in  other  countries  characterise  mid-day.  Under  the 
agreeable  influence  of  a  brilliant,  cloudless  sky,  I  descended  into 
the  street,  and  mingled  with  the  active,  ant-like  multitude,  every 
member  of  which  presented  a  physiognomy  full  of  thought  and 
calculation:  gold,  gold,  seemed  to  be  the  only  object: 


That  yellow  slave 


Will  knit,  and  break  religions;  bless  the  accursed; 
Make  the  hoar  leprosy  adored;  place  thieves, 
And  give  them  title,  knee,  and  approbation, 
With  senators  on  the  bench. 

Timon  of  Athens,  Act  IV.  Scene  3. 

The  first  circumstance  that  afforded  novelty  was,  that  amidst 
all  the  bustle  I  seldom  met  with  any  carriages  on  wheels  to  aug- 
ment the  noise  of  the  scene.  Upon  enquiry  I  found,  that,  by  the 
police  laws  of  Amsterdam,  wheel-carriages  are  limited  to  a  certain 


156       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

number,  which  is  very  inconsiderable  compared  with  the  size  of 
the  city,  from  an  apprehension  that  an  uncontrolled  use  of  them 
might  hazard  the  foundation  of  the  houses,  most  of  which  are 
built  upon  piles;  for  nearly  the  whole  of  the  ground  on  which  this 
vast  city  stands  was  formerly  a  morass.  A  carriage,  called  by  the 
Dutch  a  sley,  and  by  the  French  a  traineau,  or,  on  account  of  its 
solemnity,  un  pot  de  chambre,  is  used  in  their  room;  it  is  the  body 
of  a  coach  fastened  by  ropes  on  a  sledge,  and  drawn  by  one  horse ; 
the  driver  walks  by  the  side  of  it,  which  he  holds  with  one  hand  to 
prevent  its  falling  over,  and  with  the  other  the  reins:  nothing  can 
be  more  melancholy  than  this  machine,  which  holds  four  persons, 
moves  at  the  rate  of  about  three  miles  an  hour,  and  seems  more 
like  the  equipage  of  an  hospital,  than  a  vehicle  in  which  the  obser- 
ver would  expect  to  find  a  merry  face;  yet  in  this  manner  do  the 
Dutch  frequently  pay  visits  and  take  the  air.  It  was  in  allusion  to 
the  forest  foundation  of  this  wonderful  place,  that  Erasmus  spor- 
tively observed,  when  he  first  visited  it,  that  he  had  reached  a  city, 
the  inhabitants  of  which,  like  crows,  lived  upon  the  tops  of  trees : 
and  another  wit  compared  Amsterdam  to  Venice,  on  account  of 
both  having  wooden  legs. 

Amsterdam  is  situated  on  the  rivers  Y  and  Amstel,  from  the 
latter  of  which  it  derives  its  name ;  it  is  about  nine  miles  and  a  half 
in  circumference,  of  a  semicircular  form,  surrounded  with  a  fosse 
about  eighty  feet  wide,  and  a  rampart  faced  with  brick,  which  is 
in  several  places  dismantled,  and  twenty-six  bastions:  it  has  also 
eight  nobie  gates  of  stone,  and  several  draw-bridges:  the  population 
is  estimated  at  three  hundred  thousand.  In  1204,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  a  small  castle,  not  a  building  was  to  be  seen  upon  the  scite 
of  this  great  city,  which,  from  being  at  first  a  petty  village  of  fish- 
ermen, dilated  in  the  lapse  of  years,  and  by  the  enterprise  and  in- 
dustry of  the  inhabitants,  into  a  magnificent  capital,  which,  at 
length,  upon  the  shutting  up  of  the  navigation  of  the  Scheldt, 
added  the  commerce  of  Antwerp  to  its  own,  and  became  the  great 
emporium  of  the  world.  Neither  here,  nor  in  any  of  the  cities  o: 
towns  in  Holland,  through  which  I  passed,  is  a  stranger  annoyed 
by  barriers,  productions  of  passports,  or  any  of  those  disagreeable 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  157 

ceremonies  which  distinguish  the  police  of  many  other  countries. 
In  Holland  a  foreigner  finds  his  loco-motive  disposition  as  little  re- 
stricted, or  encumbered  by  municipal  regulations,  as  in  England. 
Canals  interesect  nearly  the  whole  of  this  city,  adorned  with  ave- 
nues of  stately  elms.  Many  of  the  houses  are  very  splendid,  par- 
ticularly those  in  Kiezer's  gragt,  or  Emperor's  street,  and  Heeren 
gragt,  or  Lords'  street,  where  there  are  many  mansions,  which, 
were  they  not  so  much  concealed  by  the  fan  of  the  trees  before 
them,  would  have  a  very  princely  appearance.  Many  of  the  shops 
are  also  very  handsome,  particularly  those  belonging  to  jewellers 
and  print-sellers;  in  the  windows  of  the  latter  prints  of  the  illus- 
trious Nelson,  and  of  our  marine  victories,  were  exposed  to  view, 
The  druggists  here,  and  in  other  parts  of  Holland,  use  as  a  sign  a 
huge  carved  head,  with  the  mouth  wide  open,  placed  before  the 
shop  windows ;  sometimes  it  rudely  resembles  a  Mercury's  head, 
at  others  it  is  surmounted  by  a  fool's  cap.  This  clumsy  and  sin- 
gular sign  is  called  de  gaaper,  the  gaper;  what  analogy  it  bears  to 
physic  I  could  not  learn;  it  is  very  likely  to  have  originated  in  whim 
and  caprice.  Some  of  the,  shop  boards,  called  uithang  borden,  have 
ridiculous  verses  inscribed  upon  them. 

The  first  place  my  curiosity  led  me  to  was  the  Stadt -house, 
which  is  unquestionably  a  wonderful  edifice,  considering  that  Hol- 
land furnishes  no  stone,  and  that  the  foundation  of  the  building 
was  boggy;  the  latter  circumstance  rendered  it  necessary  to  have 
an  artificial  foundation  of  extraordinary  construction  and  magni- 
tude, and  accordingly  it  rests  upon  thirteen  thousand  six  hundred 
and  ninety-five  massy  trees,  or  piles,  the  first  of  which  was  driven 
on  the  20th  of  January,  1648,  and  the  last  on  the  6th  of  October 
following,  when  the  first  stone,  with  a  suitable  inscription,  was 
laid;  and  seven  years  afterwards  the  different  colleges  of  magi- 
strates took  formal  possession  of  the  apartments  allotted  for  their 
respective  offices,  but  at  this  time  the  roof  and  dome  were  not  com- 
pleted: the  expense  of  this  mighty  edifice  amounted  to  two  mil- 
lions sterling.  The  principal  architect  was  John  Van  Kampen, 
who  acted  under  the  controul  of  four  burgomasters.  The  area  in 
which  it  stands  is  spacious,  and  was  till  lately  called  Revolutie 


158  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

plein;  it  is  disfigured  by  the  proximity  of  the  waag,  or  weigh-- 
house,  a  very  old  shabby  building.  The  form  of  the  Stadt-house 
is  square,  its  front  is  two  hundred  and  eighty-two  feet,  its  depth 
two  hundred  and  fifty-five,  and  its  height  one  hundred  and  sixteen.. 
It  has  seven  small  porticoes,  representative  of  the  seven  provinces ; 
the  want  of  a  grand  entrance  is  a  great  architectural  defect,  which 
immediately  excites  the  surprise  of  the  traveller;  but  it  was  so 
constructed  from  the  wary  precautionary  foresight  of  the  magi- 
strates who  had  the  superintendence  of  the  building,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  preventing  free  access  to  a  mob,  in  case  of  tumult. 

One  of  the  first  apartments  which  attracts  the  attention  is  the 
tribunal,  on  the  basement  floor;  in  this  room,  prisoners  who  have 
been  found  guilty  of  capital  offences  are  conducted  to  receive  the 
awful  sentence  of  the  law ;  the  entrance  is  through  a  massy  folding 
door,  decorated  with  brass  emblems,  indicative  of  the  purpose  to 
which  the  chamber  is  applied,  such  as  Jove's  beams  of  lightning, 
and  flaming  swords — under  which  are  two  lines  from  Virgil, 

"  Discite  Justitiam  moniti 
"  Et  non  temnere  DivosT" 

Above,  between  the  rails,  are  the  old  and  new  city  arms,  and 
at  the  bottom  are  death's-heads  and  bones.  The  whole  of  the  inte- 
rior is  composed  of  white  marble ;  on  the  south  and  north  are  two 
rows  of  fluted  pilasters,  one  above  another ;  on  the  west  side  are 
statues  representing  four  nude  women,  supporting  the  cornices 
which  crown  the  pilasters  :  two  of  these  figures  conceal  their  faces 
with  their  hands,  as  indicative  of  shame :  in  the  copartments  be- 
tween are  basso-relievos,  representing  the  judgment  of  Solomon ; 
Zaleucus,  the  Locrian  king,  tearing  out  one  of  his  eyes,  to  save 
one  of  his  son's  who  had  been  condemned  to  lose  both  for  adultery, 
by  a  law  made  expressly  against  that  crime  by  his  father;  and 
Junius  Brutus  putting  his  sons  to  death.  Above  these  are  figures 
representing  Romulus  and  Remus  drawing  milk  from  the  she  wolf, 
and  also  of  Jupiter:  the  head  of  Medusa  upon  the  shield  of  Pallas 
is  very  finely  executed.  In  the  north,  under  a  seat  of  white  marble, 
is  a  place  for  the  secretary,  who  pronounces  the  fatal  sentence; 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  159 

when  the  magistrates  appear  in  their  robes  at  a  gallery  on  the  west 
side.  On  the  fore  part  of  the  judgement  seat  is  a  fine  marble  sta- 
tue of  Silence,  which  Dutch  gallantry  represents  under  the  form  of 
a  woman,  seated  on  the  ground,  with  her  finger  on  her  mouth,  and 
two  children  weeping  over  a  death's-head.  On  each  side  of  this  seat 
are  serpents  writhing  round  a  tree,  each  with  an  apple  in  his  mouth; 
the  same  ornaments  also  decorate  the  sides  of  the  door:  above 
the  seat  is  a  statue,  raised  on  a  black  marble  pedestal,  represen- 
ting the  city  of  Amsterdam  as  a  virgin,  guarded  by  a  lion  on  each 
side;  above  the  head  of  the  figure  is  an  imperial  crown,  protected 
by  a  spread  eagle ;  on  each  side  of  the  pedestal  are  Neptune  and 
Glaucus,  representative  of  the  rivers  Y  and  Amstel,  and  a  little 
higher  are  the  arms  of  the  four  burgomasters,  in  whose  magistracy 
the  first  stone  of  this  building  was  laid,  gracefully  connected  by 
festoons.  On  the  pedestal  is  an  inscription  in  letters  of  gold,  com- 
memorative of  the  laying  of  the  first  stone  of  the  building. 

The  principal  bas-reliefs  and  ornaments  in  this  room,  and  other 
parts  of  this  edifice,  were  made  by  Artus  Quellinus,  a  celebrated 
statuary  of  Antwerp.  When  the  awful  doom  of  the  law  is  to  be 
pronounced,  the  criminal  is  brought  into  this  hall  guarded,  and 
nothing  is  omitted  in  point  of  solemnity  to  impress  on  the  mind 
of  the  delinquent  and  the  spectators  the  awful  consequences  of 
violating  the  laws  of  the  country. 

A  thorough  knowledge  of  human  nature  dictated  the  policy  of 
placing  this  hall  on  the  ground-floor,  the  brazen  door  of  which 
opens  into  a  thoroughfare  passage  through  the  Stadt-house.  I 
never  passed  by  this  door  without  seeing  numbers  of  the  lower 
orders  of  people  gazing  through  the  rails  of  it  upon  the  emble- 
matical objects  within,  and  apparantly  in  melancholy  meditation, 
reflecting  upon  the  purposes  to  which  this  hall  is  applied,  and 
upon  the  ignominious  results  of  deviating  from  the  paths  of  virtue. 
On  one  side  of  this  chamber  is  a  grand  double  staircase,  which 
leads  to  the  Burghers',  or  Marble  Hall:  it  is  120  feet  long,  about 
57  broad,  and  80  high,  and  is  entirely  composed  of  white  marble, 
as  are  the  galleries,  which  are  2  I  feet  wide  on  each  side,  into 
which  the  entrances  to  the  different  courts  of  justice,  the  chamber 


160  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

of  domains,  of  insurance,  of  orphans,  the  council-room,  the  offices 
of  the  bank,  Sec.  open.  This  magnificent  room  and  the  surround- 
ing galleries  were  seen  to  great  advantage,  on  account  of  their 
having  been  cleaned  previous  to  the  coronation  of  the  king,  which 
was  intended  to  have  taken  place  in  it  about  a  month  after  I  visited 
it.  A  great  number  of  workmen  had  been  employed  in  scraping, 
washing,  and  polishing  their  marble  sides  for  several  months,  and 
their  appearance  was  equally  grand  and  beautiful:  the  bronze  gates 
and  railing  which  form  the  grand  entrance  of  the  hall  are  massy, 
yet  exquisitely  executed:  over  this  entrance  is  a  colonade  of  Co- 
rinthian pillars  of  red  and  white  marble.  At  one  end  is  a  colossal 
figure  of  Atlas  supporting  on  his  shoulders  the  globe,  attended  by 
Vigilance  and  Wisdom.  The  roof  is  painted  with  allegorical 
figures.  Upon  the  floor,  the  celestial  and  terrestrial  globes  are  de- 
lineated in  brass  and  various  coloured  marbles,  arranged  in  three 
large  circles  twenty-two  feet  diameter ;  the  two  external  ones  re- 
presenting the  hemispheres  of  the  earth,  and  the  centre  the  plan- 
isphere of  the  heavens. 

The  Biirgomaster's  Cabinet,  as  it  is  still  called,  is  a  handsome 
apartment,  the  entrance  of  which  is  adorned  with  some  beautiful 
carving,  emblematical  of  the  use  of  the  apartment.  The  chim- 
ney-piece in  this  room,  representing  the  triumphs  of  Fabius 
Maximus,  is  worthy  of  notice.  To  the  left  of  the  Burgomasters' 
chamber  is  a  gallery,  ten  feet  deep  and  thirty  broad,  where,  after 
the  ringing  of  a  bell  to  give  notice,  all  proclamations,  law  sen- 
tences, and  municipal  regulations,  are  promulgated. 

The  chamber  of  the  treasury  ordinary  contains  a  picture  of 
Mary  de  Medicis  as  large  as  life;  a  chart  of  Amsterdam  as  it  ap- 
peared when  first  walled  round  in  1482;  and  on  the  bookcases  arc 
some  curious  effigies  of  the  ancient  Earls  and  Countesses  of  Hol- 
land. 

The  Burgomasters'  apartment  is  forty-five  feet  broad  and  thirty- 
deep,  and  is  in  my  opinion  the  handsomest  room  in  the  Stadt-house. 
The  marble  chimney-pieces  are  enriched  with  many  exquisitely- 
sculptured  basso-relievos  by  De  Wit;  but  its  chief  ornament  is 
two  paintings;  one  by  Ferdinand  Bol,  representing  Curius  at  his 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  i$\ 

rural  repats;  and  the  other,  Fabricius  in  the  camp  of  Phyrrhus,  by 
Flink.  From  this  room  there  is  a  passage  to  the  Execution  Cham- 
ber, or  the  Chamber  of  the  last  Prayers,  where  criminals  condemned 
to  death  take  leave  of  their  priest,  and  pass  through  a  window,  the 
lower  part  of  which  is  of  wood,  to  enable  its  being  opened  level 
with  the  floor  to  the  scaffold,  which  is  constructed  on  the  outside, 
opposite  to  the  weigh-house,  and  which  is  raised  as  high  as  this 
part  of  the  building.  There  is  nothing  in  this  room  worthy  of  no- 
tice, except  its  melancholy  appropriation.  From  this  room  we  were 
conducted  to  the  council  chamber,  which  is  forty-five  feet  wide  and 
thirty  deep,  where  there  is  a  very  large  painting  by  Jacob  de  Wilt, 
representing  Moses  and  the  seventy  elders  of  Israel.  Above  the 
chimney-piece  to  the  north  is  a  very  fine  picture  by  Flink,  the  sub- 
ject Solomon  imploring  heaven  for  wisdom.  Above  this  is  a  scrip- 
tural subject,  a  noble  production,  from  the  pencil  of  Bronkhorst. 
Some  of  the  basso-relievos  which  adorn  various  parts  of  this  room, 
sculptured  by  De  Wit,  are  exquisitely  fine,  particularly  a  hive  of 
bees,  a  clock,  a  sieve  and  a  lamp,  a  pen  and  ink-horn.  It  would 
puzzle  a  magician  to  interpret  many  of  the  allegorical  devices,  but 
they  are  all  beautifully  executed. 

In  the  chamber  for  marriages,  and  injuries,  there  is  nothing 
to  arrest  the  attention  of  a  visitor  one  minute.  In  Holland,  mar- 
riage being  a  civil  contract,  when  agreed  upon  in  Amsterdam,  it 
is  always  first  performed  before  the  magistrates  in  this  room,  with- 
out whose  fiat  the  ceremony  would  be  invalid;  the  clergyman,  ac- 
cording to  the  religion  of  the  parties,  performs  his  functions  af- 
terwards. This  room  is  also  called,  amongst  the  lower  orders  of 
people,  the  Scolding  Chamber,  on  account  of  the  irritability  fre- 
quently displayed  here  by  parties  of  that  class,  when  they  come  to 
obtain  redress  for  small  offences.  We  were  also  led  through  the 
chamber  for  sea  affairs,  the  mercers'  hall,  the  painters'  chamber, 
and  in  this  room,  but  little  suited  to  the  treasures  which  it  contains, 
is  a  very  long  picture  by  Vandyke,  in  which  there  is  a  gray  head 
of  an  old  man,  of  matchless  excellence,  which  the  observer  cannot 
but  retire  from  with  regret.    The  burgomasters  of  Amsterdam 

"^  ere  offeved  seven  thousand  florins  for  this  head  alone,  to  be  cut 

X 


162  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

out  from  the  rest  of  the  picture.  There  is  also  a  large  picture  by 
Vanderhelst,  representing  a  feast  given  by  the  burgomasters  of 
Amsterdam  to  the  ambassadors  of  Spain,  on  account  of  the  peace 
of  Munster,  which  closed  a  war  that  had  lain  waste  the  Nether- 
lands for  eighty  years;  and  many  other  large  and  fine  paintings  by 
Rubens,  Jordaans,  and  Otho  Venius.  It  is  a  matter  of  surprise, 
that  after  Holland  submitted  to  the  French  arms,  these  exquisite 
productions  should  be  permitted  to  remain  upon  the  walls  which 
they  have  so  long  adorned. 

In  the  great,  or  council  of  war  chamber,  there  are  some  good 
paintings  representing  the  ancient  train-bands,  and  officers  in  their 
proper  costume ;  many  of  which  are  portraits.  In  the  secretary's 
office,  a  handsome  room,  amongst  other  decorations,  is  a  basso- 
relievo  of  Silence,  which  the  Dutch  are  very  fond  of  representing 
under  the  form  of  a  woman.  Upon  my  observing  to  a  Dutchman, 
that  in  England  such  a  compliment  had  never  been  paid  to  my  own 
lovely  country  women,  he  replied:  "  Yes,  but  do  you  not  notice 
that  the  statuary  has  placed  the  finger  of  the  lady  upon  her  mouth, 
as  if  he  thought  that  no  one  of  the  sex,  not  even  a  Dutch  female, 
could  preserve  silence  without  keeping  her  lips  forcibly  together 
with  her  finger."  The  convenience  of  having  nearly  all  the  prin- 
cipal public  offices,  and  courts  of  justice  under  one  roof,  is  very 
great;  the  size  of  the  kingdom,  and  simplicity  of  its  public  trans- 
actions, render  such  a  concentration  more  easy  of  accomplishment 
in  Holland  than  in  England. 

Before  we  ascended  to  the  dome,  we  were  introduced  into  the 
great  magazine  of  arms,  which  extends  the  whole  length  of  the 
front  and  part  of  the  sides  of  this  vast  pile :  it  contains  a  curious  and 
valuable  collection  of  ancient  and  modern  Dutch  arms.  Some  co- 
lours which  the  French  took  from  the  Spaniards  have  been  lately 
added,  as  a  present  from  the  king  to  this  city,  a  donation  which 
could  not  fail  affording  great  gratification  to  a  people,  who  to 
this  hour  hold  the  Spanish  nation  in  abhorrence.  The  prospect 
from  the  tower,  or  dome,  is  very  fine  and  extensive,  commanding  the 
whole  of  the  city  and  its  environs,  crowded  with  windmills,  the  river 
Y  filled  with  ships,  the  Zuyder  Zee,  the  Amstel,  the  Haarlem  lake. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  163 

and  the  quarter  containing  the  gardens,  the  admiralty,  and  ships 
of  war  on  the  stocks.  From  this  elevated  spot  we  were  nearer  the 
bronze  figures  which  adorn  the  front,  representing  Justice,  Wealth, 
and  Strength,  and  which  are  of  an  enormous  size:  on  the  other 
side  is  a  collossal  bronze  statue  of  Atlas  supporting  the  world, 
executed  in  a  masterly  manner.  The  tower  contains  a  vast  number 
of  bells,  the  largest  of  which  weighs  between  six  and  seven  thou- 
sand pounds;  the  carrillons  in  this  dome  are  remarkably  sweet, 
they  play  every  quarter  of  an  hour  an  agreeable  air,  which  is  ex- 
ecuted to  admiration.  An  excellent  carilloneur  is  engaged  to  enter- 
tain the  citizens  of  Amsterdam  three  times  a  week ;  the  perfection 
to  which  he  has  brought  his  performance  can  only  be  appreciated 
by  those  who  have  heard  it.  The  brass  barrel  by  which  he  plays 
is  seven  feet  and  a  half  in  diameter,  and  weighs  four  thousand  four 
hundred  and  seventy-four  pounds.  The  clocks  strike  the  full  hour 
at  the  half  hour,  and  upon  the  expiration  of  the  full  hour,  repeat 
it  upon  a  bell  of  a  deeper  tone. 


164  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Dungeons  in  the  stadt-house treatment  of  the  priso- 
ners  HALL  OF  JUSTICE THE  TORTURE CRIMINAL  TRI- 
ALS  CAPITAL   PUNISHMENT ANECDOTE  OF  A  MALEFACTOR 

.....THE  BANK ITS  FORMER  AND  PRESENT  STATE POPULAR 

TUMULT EFFECTS  OF  DIFFUSIVE  EDUCATION PUBLIC  FETE 

AT  AMSTERDAM DANCING  DUTCHMEN THE  BEGUINES 

LADIES  OF  HOLLAND HOUSE    RENT THE    WATER   OF    AM- 
STERDAM. 

BY  considerable  interest,  and  with  much  difficulty,  I  was  ad- 
mitted to  see  the  prison  which  occupies  one  of  the  courts  of  the 
Stadt-house,  on  two  sides  of  which,  below  ground,  are  the  dun- 
geons, to  which  the  gaoler  conducted  us  by  a  lamp:  as  a  place  of 
confinement  nothing  can  be  more  secure,  and  as  a  place  of  pun- 
ishment more  horrible.  After  descending  a  dreary  flight  of  steps, 
and  passing  through  a  long  narrow  passage,  midway  vast  double 
doors,  thickly  plated  with  iron,  were  opened,  through  which  we 
entered,  and  at  the  end  were  stopped  by  two  other  massy  doors 
which,  upon  being  unbolted,  led  to  a  row  of  subterranean  dun- 
geons. In  the  first,  by  the  faint  light  of  a  rush  candle,  I  discerned 
the  emaciated  figure  of  a  man  who  had  been  convicted  of  robbery, 
attentively  reading:  he  just  turned  from  his  book  to  look  at  us  a  mo- 
ment, and  then  returned  to  it;  he  was  condemned  to  inhabit  this  cell 
alone  for  life!  In  the  next  were  two  young  men  who,  in  the  forms  of 
Dutchmen,  seemed  to  carry  the  elastic  souls  of  Frenchmen,  that 
bend  to  and  carol  under  every  human  misery;  for  in  this  gloomy 
abode,  in  which  one  would  suppose  resignation  would  turn  to 
despair,  they  were  whistling  and  waltzing  in  the  dark ;  whilst  in 
the  third  were  several  women  and  a  young  girl,  the  latter  about 
fifteen,  confined  for  having  displayed  an  early,  and  rather  too  vio- 
lent a  fondness  for  the  laws  of  nature.  These  miserable  beings  were 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  165 

also  in  darkness,  except  when  they  closely  approached  the  vast 
double  bars  which  crossed  the  windows  of  their  cells,  when  they 
were  enabled  to  behold  a  little  light,  which  faintly  reached  them 
through  some  low  oblong  apertures  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
passage,  thickly  guarded  by  similar  massy  bars,  just  raised  above 
the  level  of  the  court,  into  which  these  poor  wretches  are  never 
permitted  to  walk ;  for,  deplorable  to  relate,  from  the  first  minute 
of  their  commitment  till  their  fate  is  finally  fixed,  they  are  never 
suffered  to  quit  their  gloomy  abodes  but  to  appear  before  their 
judges  in  the  adjoining  hall5  where  they  undergo  private  exami- 
nations, and  at  length  a  close  trial.  The  crimes  with  which  these 
latter  unhappy  prisoners  stood  charged  were  not  of  a  very  malig- 
nant nature,  yet  were  they,  even  before  the  guilt  of  some  of  them 
was  established,  cut  off  from  light  and  air,  and  immured  in  regions 
fit  only  to  be  a  receptacle  for  the  dead.  I  need  scarcely  inform  the 
reader  that  their  appearance  when  they  pressed  towards  the  gra- 
ting, when  alone  they  were  distinguishable,  was  in  a  high  degree 
squalid  and  sickly. 

None  of  these  miserable  wretches  were  loaded  with  irons ;  they 
would,  indeed,  have  been  a  very  unnecessary  augmentation  of  cru- 
elty, for  nothing  but  the  miraculous  interference  of  an  angel  could 
have  burst  their  prison-doors,  which  were  doubly  cased  with  iron, 
and  fastened  with  enormous  bolts  and  locks,  whilst  the  walls  of 
the  cells  were  cased  with  ponderous  masonry,  through  which,  if 
a  prisoner  had  the  means  to  penetrate,  he  would  afterwards  have 
to  encounter  all  the  earth  upon  which  the  rest  of  the  Stadt-house 
stood.  The  gaoler  showed  us  some  irons  of  a  particular  construc- 
tion, and  a  board  which  fastened  round  the  neck  and  one  hand,  for 
refractory  criminals,  but  he  assured  me  they  had  not  been  used 
for  many  years. 

The  principal  secretary  of  the  magistracy  showed  me  the  hall 
of  justice,  which  was  also  formerly  the  torture-chamber.  Here  the 
miserable  sufferer,  who  refused  to  confess  his  guilt,  at  the  pleasure 
of  his  barbarous  judge,  underwent  a  variety  of  torments;  amongst 
others,  it  was  usual  to  fasten  his  hands  behind  his  neck,  with  a 
cord  which  passed  through  pullies  fastened  to  a  vaulted  ceiling, 


166  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

by  means  of  which  he  was  jerked  up  and  down,  with  leaden  weights 
of  fifty  pounds  each  lashed  to  his  feet,  until  anguish  overpowered 
his  senses,  and  a  confession  of  guilt  was  heard  to  quiver  on  his 
lips.  Some  of  the  iron*-work  by  which  this  infamous  process  was 
effected  was  still  adhering  to  the  walls.  This  ferocious  and  stupid 
practice  was  only  abolished  in  the  year  1798.  This  room  is  en- 
tirely of  stone,  low,  and  vaulted;  the  windows  are  small,  and 
guarded  by  vast  double  bars  of  iron,  and  the  whole  is  very  little 
better  than  a  large  dungeon.  A  bar  for  the  prisoner  to  appear  at, 
a  seat  for  the  witness,  for  only  one  is  most  judiciously  admitted  at 
a  time;  a  table  and  raised  seats  for  the  judges,  and  lower  ones  for 
the  officers  attached  to  the  tribunal,  form  all  the  arrangements  of 
this  gloomy  seat  of  justice.  The  prisoner  is  permitted  to  have  a 
counsellor  to  plead  his  cause,  and  no  strangers  are  admitted  oa 
any  account.  Three  days  are  suffered  to  elapse  between  the  sen- 
tence and  its  execution  in  capital  cases;  during  which  the  prisoner 
is  allowed  whatever  refreshment  he  may  choose;  an  indulgence 
■which,  from  the  state  of  the  appetite  at  such  a  period,  seldom  runs 
the  state  into  much  expense.  Public  punishments  are  inflicted  four 
times  in  the  course  of  the  year.  On  these  occasions  a  vast  scaffold 
is  erected,  as  I  have  mentioned,  in  the  great  area  between  the 
stadt-house  and  the  weighing  or  custom-house,  upon  a  level  with 
the  first  floor  of  the  former  building,  through  which  the  criminals 
enter  to  the  spot  assigned  for  them  to  receive  their  punishment: 
those  who  are  to  be  whipped  receive  that  punishment  with  consi- 
derable severity,  and  are  not  permitted  to  retire  till  those  who  are 
to  die  have  suffered  death,  which  is  inflicted  by  decapitation  with 
the  sword  or  hanging,  though  the  latter  is  most  frequent.  On  these 
melancholy  occasions,  the  chief  magistrates  attend  in  their  robes, 
and  nothing  is  omitted  to  augment  the  solemnity  of  the  scene. 

In  consequence  of  its  being  expected  that  though  a  culprit 
is  to  suffer  death,  he  is  to  receive  the  fatal  stroke  in  the  precise 
mode  prescribed  by  the  law,  a  magistrate  who  presided  at  the 
execution  of  a  murderer  a  few  years  since,  had  nearly  subjected 
himself  to  a  severe  punishment.  The  guilt  of  the  criminal  was 
aggravated  by  cruelty,  and  he  was  condemned  to  lose  his  life  by 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  167 

decapitation,  in  which  case  the  law  directs  that  it  shall  be  severed 
by  one  stroke  of  the  sword:  previous  to  his  quitting  the  chamber 
of  the  last  prayers  he  laid  a  wager  with  a  friend  who  attended  him 
that  he  had  suggested  an  expedient  by  which  the  executioner 
should  not  be  able  to  perform  his  office;  and  accordingly,  the 
moment  he  knelt  to  receive  the  fatal  stroke,  he  rolled  his  head  in 
every  direction  so  violently,  and  so  rapidly,  that  the  executioner 
could  not  strike  him  with  any  probability  of  decollating  him  at 
one  blow ;  and  after  many  fruitless  aims,  was  compelled  to  re- 
nounce the  attempt.  The  officers  who  were  entrusted  to  see  to  the 
execution  of  the  sentence  were  in  the  greatest  dilemma ;  in  vain 
did  they  try  by  argument  to  persuade  the  fellow  to  remain  still,  and 
quietly  have  his  head  taken  off;  he  was  remanded  back  to  prison,  and 
after  an  hour's  deliberation,  the  presiding  magistrate,  upon  his  own 
responsibility,  ordered  the  gallows  to  be  brought  out,  upon  which  he 
caused  him  to  be  executed.  The  judges  and  lawyers  took  alarm,  and 
half  the  city  felt  as  if  the  murderer  had  been  murdered;  and  nothing 
but  the  high  character,  rank,  and  influence  of  the  magistrate,  by 
whose  resolute  orders  the  miscreant  at  length  paid  the  forfeit  of  his 
life,  preserved  him  from  the  most  unpleasant  consequences  for  en- 
forcing the  spirit  of  the  law  after  a  different  fashion  from  that  pre- 
scribed. Capital  punishments  are  very  rare:  four  malefactors  were 
executed  in  1799,  and  nine  since.  The  Dutch  entertain  a  frightful 
opinion  of  the  criminal  laws  of  England,  which  they  consider  very- 
sanguinary,  from  the  great  number  of  delinquents  who  are  an- 
nually put  to  death  there. 

The  strong  apartments  which  formerly  contained  the  vast 
treasures  of  the  bank,  and  the  offices  attached  to  that  wealthy- 
concern,  are  on  the  ground-floor,  where  several  clerks  are  em- 
ployed to  transact  the  business  of  that  celebrated  establishment. 
From  the  wise  measures  adopted  by  the  king,  who  made,  as  I 
have  before  observed,  the  recognition  of  the  national  debt  one  of 
the  first  measures  of  his  government,  the  national  creditor  has  no 
apprehensions.  Before  the  war,  this  institution,  which  was  a  bank 
of  deposit,  was  supposed  to  contain  the  greatest  quantity  of  bullion 
in  the  world,  and  popular  credulity  dwelt  with  ostentatious  fond- 


168  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

ness  upon  the  extent  of  its  accumulated  treasures,  which  they  re- 
sembled to  a  Peruvian  mine  ;  its  pile  of  precious  metals  was  va- 
lued at  the  enormous  sum  of  forty  millions.  The  regulations 
which  governed  deposits  made  in  this  bank  were  as  follow :  the 
person  depositing  cash  or  bullion  received  a  credit  in  the  books 
for  the  amount,  and  a  receipt  for  the  same,  which  expired  at  the 
end  of  six  months,  was  given,  renewable  upon  paying  a  small  per 
centage  for  warehouse  rent :  if  such  receipt  expired  before  the 
money  or  bullion  was  redeemed,  neither  the  one  nor  the  other 
could  be  afterwards  removed,  but  for  it  an  equivalent  in  bank  cre- 
dit was  given,  which  receipt  could  afterwards  be  converted  into 
cash  in  the  market.  Another  regulation  was,  that  not  a  florin  of 
the  cash  or  bullion  invested  should  ever  be  removed  by  way  of 
loan.  This  compact  between  the  bank  and  the  creditor  was  always 
considered  inviolable.  A  rumour  was  circulated,  with  equal  celerity 
and  anxiety,  soon  after  the  arrival  of  the  French  in  Holland,  highly 
injurious  to  the  responsibility  of  the  institution,  and  a  deputation 
of  merchants  waited  respectfully  on  the  directors  of  the  bank,  to 
solicit  satisfaction  as  to  its  solvency ;  to  which  an  answer,  couched 
in  general  terms,  but  favourable  to  its  responsibility,  .was  given. 
Owing  to  the  unshaken  stability  which  it  had  displayed,  from 
1672,  when  Louis  the  Fourteenth,  at  the  head  of  a  victorious  army, 
was  expected  every  hour  to  have  made  his  triumphal  entry  into 
Amsterdam,  to  1795,  when  the  French  fixed  the  destiny  of  the 
country,  this  answer  was  received  with  perfect' confidence  and  se- 
curity in  the  bank,  and  any  doubt  upon  the  subject  was  considered 
to  be  the  result  of  party  malignity.  Upon  the  French  taking  pos- 
session of  Amsterdam,  a  complete  investigation  of  the  business 
followed,  and  the  official  report  of  the  provisional  representatives 
of  the  city  announced,  that 

"  No  deficiency  whatever  will  exist  in  the  said  bank,  and  the  debits 
and  credits  will  precisely  balance,  with  this  exception,  that  instead  of 
species,  there  have  been  received  into  the  said  bank,  from  time  to  time, 
as  securities  for  large  sums  advanced  by  it  within  the  last  fifty  years,  a 
very  considerable  number  of  bonds,  viz. 

"  Seventy  bonds  of  the  India  Company  of  Amsterdam,  guaranteed 
by  the  states  of  that  province,  being  each  of  100,000  florins  banco,  at  three 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  169 

per  cent,  interest;  besides  a  similar  one  of  50,000  banco,  on  which  there  will 
be  due,  according  to  the  calculation  of  the  said  clerks,  the  sums  of  249,000 
florins  banco,  for  interest.  On  account  of  which  bonds,  the  treasurer  of  the 
said  city  is  debited  in  the  aforesaid  balance  6,273,000  florins  banco. 

"  Besides  these,  there  are  fifty  bonds,  each  for  24,000  florins,  on  ac- 
count of  the  provinces  of  Holland  and  West  Friezland,  belonging  to  the 
loan-office  of  this  city,  on  which,  according  to  the  information  of  the  clerks, 
the  bank  has  advanced,  agreeable  to  the  aforesaid  balance,  the  sum  of 
838,857  florins  banco,  on  which  there  will  be  due  for  interest  30,000  florins. 
In  addition  to  which,  the  loan-office  owes  the  bank,  conformable  to  the 
same  information,  the  sum  of  1,715,000  florins  banco. 

"  That  further,  if  every  thing  shall  appear  as  has  been  stated  by  the 
said  clerks,  and  sterling  being  converted  into  stock,  the  treasurer  of  the 
city  will,  in  addition,  owe  to  the  bank,  and  for  which  it  was  made  debtor 
at  the  closing  of  the  accounts  above  alluded  to,  the  sum  of  38,358     2     0 

And  what  it  owed  at  the  actual  closing  of.  the  accounts,  155,314     6     8 


Making  together,  banco,  -  Florins  193,672     8     8 

"  That  there  is  also  due,  from  the  said  bank,  227,264  2  8,  for  which 

bonds  were  originally  given;  but  according  to  the  clerk's  statement  were 

burnt;  but  for  which  the  city  notwithstanding  paid  interest  annually  to  the 

bank. 

"  That  it  is  nevertheless  obvious,  that  the  city  is  responsible  for  this 
sum,  as  well  as  for  the  whole,  as  it  ought  to  be  considered  with  respect 
to  it,  not  only  as  guarantee,  but  as  "actual  debtor  to  the  bank. 

"  That  moreover,  among  other  things  in  the  said  bank,  there  has  been 
found  in  substance  all  the  specie  for  which  accountable  receipts  have 
been  given,  agreeable  to  the  list  made  out,  and  delivered  to  the  commit- 
tee of  commerce  and  marine  by  the  cashiers  of  the  bank,  and  which  can, 
in  consequence,  be  at  all  times  drawn  out  by  the  holders  of  the  said  re- 
ceipts, in  exchange  for  them,  when  it  shall  please  them  so  to  do. 

"  The  aforesaid  provisional  representatives  have,  therefore,  not  only 
taken  the  requisite  and  most  efficacious  measures,  that  henceforward 
there  shall  not  be  delivered  from,  nor  advanced  by,  the  said  bank,  con- 
trary to  its  original  institution,  any  specie  whatsoever,  by  any  authority, 
either  as  a  loan,  or  in  any  other  illegal  manner;  but  also  that  the  said 
bonds,  lodged  in  the  said  bank  as  securities,  as  aforesaid,  shall  be  liquida- 
ted as  soon  as  possible,  and  generally,  that  this  city,  as  debtor  to  the  bank, 
shall,  with  all  practicable  dispatch,  discharge  in  cash  the  balance  of  its 
account  with  the  said  bank,  which  being  done,  the  provisional  represen- 
tatives declare,  that  there  can  exist  no  deficiency  of  any  kind  soever;  and 
that  they  will,  without  delay,  take  into  their  serious  consideration,  and 
will  carry  into  immediate  effect,  the  means  to  obtain  this  end." 

For  this  sum,  amounting  to  upwards  of  nine  millions  of  florins, 

the  proper  investments  had  been  made,  but  of  the  deposits,  which 

ought  to  have  been  permanent,  In  consequence  of  the  expiration 

Y      * 


170  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

of  the  receipts,  not  a  florin  remained  in  the  caves  of  the  bank. 
It  appeared  that  the  directors,  like  the  magistrate  who  presided  at 
the  execution  of  the  murderer,  beneficially  for  the  state,  no  doubt 
had  departed  from  the  strict  letter  of  the  law,  and  instead  of  suf- 
fering so  much  wealth  to  remain  in  a  state  of  unproductive  iner- 
tion,  they  had  duplicated  the  energies  of  credit  by  judicious  and 
advantageous  loans  of  it  to  a  variety  of  merchants  and  tradesmen. 
This  statement  excited  the  highest  indignation  against  the  direc- 
tors, who  were,  in  the  violence  of  that  party-spirit  which  then 
raged  in  Holland,  branded  with  every  epithet  which  appertains  to 
the  real  national  defaulter.  The  deficiency  thus  explained  could 
have  no  injurious  influence  upon  the  bank,  with  regard  to  the  cash 
receipts  which  were  unexpired,  unless  the  debts  due  to  the  bank, 
upon  such  accommodations,  should  not  be  regularly  discharged. 
But  no  explanation  could  appease  the**  popular  fury,  which  con- 
nected this  politic  deviation  from  the  strict  letter  of  an  unwise  law 
into  high  treason  against  the  state,  and  loudly  demanded,  that  all 
the  directors  of  the  bank,  and  persons  entrusted  with  the  manage- 
ment of  any  other  public  fund,  should  be  put  under  arrest :  to  such 
a  height  was  this  spirit  carried,  that  many  of  the  members  of  the 
old  government  would  have  been  sacrificed  to  the  animosity  of 
faction,  and  revolutionary  vengeance,  had  not  the  French  general 
interfered,  and  by  a  humane  proclamation  addressed  to  people  en- 
lightened by  the  benign  effects  of  public  education,  averted  their 
anger. 

On  the  16th  of  February,  1795,  upon  the  promulgation  of  the 
abolition  of  the  stadtholderate,  a  general  fraternization  took  place 
in  Amsterdam,  and  a  complete  oblivion  of  all  public  animosities. 
This  federation  was  celebrated,  as  I  was  informed,  with  all  imagi- 
nable pomp.  The  carillons  in  the  towers  of  the  $tadt-house,  and 
the  principal  churches,  played  the  most  enchanting  patriotic  airs, 
the  tri-coloured  flag  waived  upon  their  spires,  and  salutes  from  the 
bastions,  artillery,  and  men  of  war,  augmented  the  vivacity  of  this 
eventful  day.  Nothing  could  surpass  the  grotesque  drollery  exhi- 
bited in  various  parts  of  the  city :  the  gaiety  of  the  French  cha- 
racter completely  electrified  the  sobriety  of  the  Batavian.    Grave 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  171 

Dutch  brokers,  whose  blood  had  long  ceased  to  riot,  who  thought 
that  the  great  purposes  of  life  were  answered  when  the  duties  of 
the  bureau  were  discharged;  who,  could  they  have  compared, 
would  have  preferred  the  brick  of  the  exchange,  to  the  "  verd'rous 
wall  of  Paradise,"  who  had  never  moved  but  with  a  measured  fu- 
neral pace,  were  seen  in  large  full-bottomed  wigs,  and  with  great 
silver  buckles,  mingling  in  the  national  dance,  with  the  gay  ethe- 
real young  Parisian  conscripts,  so  that  it  might  be  said  of  the 
Dutchman 

"  He  rises  on  his  toe:  that  spirit  of  his 
"  In  aspiration  lifts  him  from  the  earth." 

Troilus  and  Cressida,  Act  IV.  Scene  3, 

To  such  an  elevation  did  the  national  spirit  and  ardour  rise, 
that  upon  a  requisition  requiring  every  person  to  deliver  up  all 
the  uncoined  gold  and  silver,  or  plate  (spoons  and  forks  excepted) 
for  the  use  of  the  state,  there  appeared  to  be  no  reluctance  to  obey 
it,  and  as  these  state  offerings  exceeded  the  estimate  required,  it  is 
likely  that  none  were  concealed.  When  these  contributions  exceed- 
ed in  value  the  amount  of  the  taxes,  to  which  the  contributor  was 
liable,  a  receipt  was  given  for  such  excess,  and  carried  to  his  credit, 
in  the  next  payments ;  with  these  assistances,  the  government  im- 
mediately directed  its  attention  to  the  deplorable  state  of  its  marine, 
which  under  the  last  of  the  Stadtholders,  had  experienced  the  most 
ruinous  and  fatal  neglect,  in  consequence  of  the  influence  of  the 
British  cabinet  upon  the  imbecile  mind  of  that  unfortunate  prince. 
When  it  is  considered  upon  the  breaking  out  of  the  last  war  with 
Holland,  how  numerous  and  valuable  were  the  Dutch  ships  detained 
in  British  ports,  what  havoc  our  cruisers  made  on  her  commerce, 
by  intercepting  her  rich  merchant  vessels,  and  blockading  her  ports, 
what  a  stagnation  of  internal  trade  must  have  followed,  and  what 
enormous  sums  were  extorted  by  the  French  army  and  its  gene- 
rals, the  reader  may  form  some  opinion  of  the  prodigious  opulence 
of  this  country,  which,  under  the  pressure  of  such  calamities,  is 
still  enabled  to  raise  her  head  with  such  few  marks  of  suffering. 

Amsterdam  has  no  noble  squares,  which  add  so  much  to  the 


172  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

splendor  of  London,  nor  is  there  any  bridge  worthy  of  being  no- 
ticed, except  that  which  crosses  the  river  Amstel,  which  is  built 
of  brick,  has  thirteen  arches,  and  is  tolerably  handsome:  or.  the 
river  looking  towards  this  bridge,  there  is  a  fine  view  of  the  city, 
which  I  preferred  sketching,  to  a  more  expanded  one  on  the  coast 
immediately  opposite  to  the  city,  in  the  north  of  Holland.  The 
only  association  throughout  Holland,  which  resembles  a  monastic 
one,  is  that  of  the  Beguines,  who  reside  in  a  large  house  appro- 
priated to  their  order,  which  is  surrounded  with  a  wall  and  ditch, 
has  a  church  within,  and  resembles  a  little  town  ;  this  sisterhood 
is  perfectly  secular,  the  members  of  which  wear  no  particular 
dress,  mingle  with  the  inhabitants  of  the  city,  quit  the  convent, 
and  marry  when  they  please ;  but  they  are  obliged,  as  long  as  they 
belong  to  the  order,  to  attend  prayers  at  stated  periods,  and  to  be 
within  the  convent  at  a  certain  hour  every  evening.  To  be  admit- 
ted of  this  order,  they  must  be  either  unmarried  or  widows  without 
children,  and  the  only  certificate  required  is  that  of  good  behaviour, 
and  that  they  have  a  competence  to  live  upon.  The  restraints  are 
so  very  few,  that  a  Beguine  may  rank  next  to  a  happy  wife:  they 
have  each  an  apartment  and  a  little  flower-garden,  and  take  no 
vows  of  celibacy  or  of  any  other  sort;  in  short,  the  whole  establish- 
ment may  be  considered  as  a  social  retirement  of  amiable  women, 
for  the  purpose  of  enjoying  life  in  an  agreeable  and  blameless 
manner.  How  superior  this  to  living 

A  barren  sister  all  your  life, 

Chaunting  faint  hymns  to  the  cold  fruitless  moon! 

Midsummer  Night's  Bream,  Act  I.  Scene  1. 

The  ladies  of  Holland,  if  I  may  judge  from  those  with  whom 
I  had  the  honour  and  happiness  of  associating  in  Amsterdam,  are 
very  amiable,  thoroughly  well  bred,  well  educated,  speak  English, 
French  and  German,  and  they  are  very  polite  and  courteous  to 
strangers :  they  are  also  remarkable  for  their  attention  to  decorum 
and  modesty;  the  unmarried,  without  prudery,  are  highly  virtu-, 
ous,  and  the  married  present  a  pattern  of  conjugal  fidelity.  They 
are  also  very  fond  of  dancing,  particularly  of  waltzing,  and  they 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  173 

are  much  attached  to  English  country  dances,  in  which  the  most 
graceful  Parisian  belle  seldom  appears  to  any  advantage. 

The  interior  of  the  houses  belonging  to  the  higher  classes  in 
Amsterdam  is  very  elegant;  the  decoration  and  furniture  of  their 
rooms  is  very  much  in  the  French  style:  they  are  also  very  fond 
of  having  a  series  of  landscapes,  painted  in  oil  colours,  upon  the 
sides  of  the  rooms,  instead  of  stucco  or  paper,  or  of  ornamenting 
them  with  pictures  and  engravings.  The  average  rent  of  respec- 
table houses,  independent  of  taxes,  is  from  one  thousand  to  twelve 
hundred  florins.  The  dinner  hour,  on  account  of  the  exchange,  is 
about  four  o'clock  in  this  city,  and  their  modes  of  cooking  unite 
those  of  England  and  France:  immediately  after  dinner  the  whole 
company  adjourn  to  coffee  in  the  drawing-room. 

The  water  in  this  part  of  Holland  is  so  brackish  and  feculent 
that  it  is  not  drank  even  by  the  common  people.  There  are  water- 
merchants,  who  are  constantly  occupied  in  supplying  the  city  with 
drinkable  water,  which  they  bring  in  boats  from  Utrecht  and 
Germany,  in  large  stone  bottles:  the  price  of  one  of  these  bottles, 
containing  a  gallon,  is  about  eight  pence  English.  The  poor,  who 
cannot  afford  to  buy  it,  substitute  rain-water.  The  wines  drank  are 
principally  claret  and  from  the  Rhine.  The  vintage  of  Portugal 
has  no  more  admirers  here  than  at  Rotterdam,  except  amongst 
young  Dutchmen,  who  have  either  been  much  in  England,  or  are 
fond  of  the  taste  and  fashions  of  our  country. 


174       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

POLICE FIRES LAWS     RELATING     TO     DEBTORS. ...DITTO     TO 

BANKRUPTS. ...THE    AANSPREEKERS... .SINGULAR    CUSTOM. ..THE 

TROKENKORB THE    STREETS INSALUBRITY    OF    STAGNANT 

CANALS. ...SOCIETIES  FOR  RECOVERING  DROWNED  PERSONS.... 
NOBLE  CONDUCT  OF  THE  EMPEROR  ALEXANDER. ...POLISH  GRA- 
TITUDE....AUSTRIA. ..THE  EXCHANGE.... A  DUTCH  MERCHANT 

HERRING  FISHERY. 

THE  laws  in  Holland  against  nocturnal  disturbers  of  the  peace 
are  very  severe.  A  few  months  before  I  was  in  Amsterdam,  two 
young  gentlemen  of  family  and  fortune  had  been  condemned  to 
pay  ten  thousand  florins  for  having,  when  "  flushed  with  the  Tus- 
can grape,"  rather  rudely  treated  two  women  of  the  lower  orders. 
The  night  police  of  Holland  would  form  an  excellent  model  for 
that  of  England.  The  watchmen  are  young,  strong,  resolute  and 
well  appointed,  but  annoying  to  a  stranger;  for  they  strike  the 
quarter-hour  with  a  mallet  on  a  board;  which  disturbs  his  repose, 
unless  he  is  fortunate  enough  to  sleep  in  a  back  room,  or  until  he 
becomes  accustomed  to  the  clatter.  Midnight  robberies  and  fires 
very  seldom  occur :  to  guard  against  the  spreading  of  the  latter, 
there  are  persons  appointed,  whose  office  it  is  to  remain  all  day 
and  all  night  in  the  towers  or  steeples  of  the  highest  churches, 
and  as  soon  as  they  discern  the  flame,  to  suspend,  if  it  be  in  the 
day,  a  flag ;  if  in  the  night,  a  lantern  towards  the  quarter  of  the 
city  in  which  it  rises,  accompanied  by  the  blowing  of  a  trumpet. 
This  vigilance,  and  the  facility  of  procuring  water  in  summer,  the 
natural  caution  of  the  people,  and  their  dread  of  such  an  accident, 
conspires  to  render  it  a  very  rare  visitor.  An  average  calculation  of 
fires  which  occur  in  London,  where  a  regular  account  of  all  such  ac- 
cidents are  registered,  by  each  fire  insurance  company  having  an 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  175 

establishment  of  firemen  and  engines,  may  be  collected  from  the  re- 
gister of  one  year,  commencing  from  Michaelmas  1805,  viz.  three 
hundred  and  six  alarms  of  fire  attended  with  little  damage,  thirty- 
one  serious  fires,  and  one  hundred  and  fifty-five  alarms,  occasioned 
by  chimneys  being  on  fire,  amounting  in  all  to  four  hundred  and 
ninety-two  accidents.  The  English  fire  insurance  companies  cal- 
culate on  an  alarm  of  fire  every  day,  and  about  eight  serious  fires 
in  every  quarter  of  a  year.  This  is  a  frightful  estimate,  and  when 
it  is  considered,  that  scarcely  a  fire  of  any  material  extent  has  been 
known  in  the  memory  of  man  to  have  broken  out  in  either  of  the 
universities,  or  in  any  of  the  inns  of  court,  where  it  would  be  most 
likely  they  would  occur,  on  account  of  the  frequent  carelessness 
of  the  inhabitants,  little  doubt  can  remain  on  the  minds  of  any  one? 
that  infinitely  the  greater  number  of  fires  which  happen  are  the 
fatal  consequences  of  diabolical  design.  fe 

Although,  owing  to  the  great  frugality  and  industry  of  the 
people,  an  insolvent  debtor  is  rather  a  rare  character,  consequently 
held  in  more  odium  in  Holland  than  in  most  other  countries,  yet 
the  laws  of  arrest  are  milder  there  than  in  England.  If  the  debtor 
be  a  citizen  or  registered  burgher,  he  is  not  subject  to  have  his 
person  seized  at  the  suit  of  the  creditor,  until  three  regular  sum- 
monses have  been  duly  served  upon  him,  to  appear  in  the  proper 
court,  and  resist  the  claim  preferred  against  him,  which  process  is 
completed  in  about  a  month;  after  which,  if  he  does  not  obey  it, 
his  person  is  subject  to  arrest,  but  only  when  he  has  quitted  his 
house ;  for  in  Holland  a  man's  dwelling  is  held  even  more  sacred 
than  in  England,  and  no  civil  process  whatever  is  capable  of  being 
served  upon  him,  if  he  stands  but  on  the  threshold  of  his  home. 
In  this  sanctuary  he  may  set  at  defiance  every  claimant ;  if,  how- 
ever, he  has  the  hardihood  to  appear  abroad,  without  having  satis- 
fied or  compromised  his  debt,  he  is  then  pretty  sure,  from  the 
vigilance  and  activity  of  the  proper  officers,  to  be  seized;  in  which 
case  he  is  sent  to  a  house  of  restriction,  not  a  prison  for  felons, 
where  he  is  maintained  with  liberal  humanity,  the  expenses  of 
which,  as  well  as  of  all  the  proceedings,  must  be  defrayed  by  the 
creditor.    LTnder  these  qualifications,  every  debtor  is  liable  b 


176  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

rest,  let  the  amount  of  the  debt  be  ever  so  small.  The  bankrupt 
laws  of  Holland  differ  from  ours  in  this  respect,  that  all  the  cre- 
ditors must  sign  the  debtor's  certificate,  or  agreement  of  liberation ; 
but  if  any  refuse,  the  ground  of  their  refusal  is  submitted  to  arbi- 
trators, who  decide  whether  the  bankrupt  shall,  notwithstanding, 
have  his  certificate  or  not. 

A  passenger  can  seldom  pass  a  street  without  seeing  ©ne  or 
more  public  functionaries,  I  believe  peculiar  to  this  country;  they 
are  called  aanspreeker,  and  their  office  is  to  inform  the  friends  and 
acquaintances  of  any  one  who  dies,  of  the  melancholy  event.  The 
dress  of  these  death-messengers  is  a  black  gown,  a  band,  a  low 
cocked  hat  with  a  long  crape  depending  behind.  To  pass  from  the 
shade  of  death  to  the  light  of  love  :  a  singular  custom  obtains  upon 
the  celebration  of  marriage  amongst  genteel  persons,  for  the  bride 
an  I  bridegroom  to  send  each  a  bottle  of  wine,  generally  fine 
hock,  spiced  and  sugared,  and  decorated  with  all  sorts  of  ribands, 
to  the  house  of  every  acquaintance  ;  a  custom  which  is  frequently 
very  expensive.  The  Dutch  have  also  a  singular  mode  of  airing 
linen  and  beds,  by  means  of  a  trokenkorb,  or  fire-basket,  which  is 
about  the  size  and  shape  of  a  magpie's  cage,  within  which  is  a  pan 
filled  with  burning  turf,  and  the  linen  is  spread  over  its  wicker 
frame,  or  to  air  the  bed,  the  whole  machine  is  placed  between  the 
sheets.  With  an  exception  of  the  streets  I  have  mentioned,  and 
some  others  in  that  quarter  of  the  city,  they  are  not  remarkable 
either  for  beauty  or  cleanliness.  They  are  all  paved  with  brick,  and 
none  of  them  have  any  divided  flagstone  foot-path  for  foot-passen- 
gers :  however,  the  pavement  is  more  handsome  and  comfortable 
than  that  of  Paris;  although  in  both  cities  the  pedestrian  has  no 
walk  that  he  can  call  his  own,  yet  in  Amsterdam  is  he  more  secure 
than  in  the  French  capital,  on  account  of  the  few  carriages,  and  the 
skill  and  caution  of  the  drivers.  In  no  capital  in  the  world,  not 
even  excepting  Petersburg,  is  the  foot-passenger  so  nobly  accom- 
modated as  in  London.  Most  of  the  streets  in  Amsterdam  are  nar- 
row; and  many  in  which  very  opulent  merchants  reside,  and  great 
traffic  is  carried  on,  are  not  more  than  sixteen  or  seventeen  feet 
wide. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  1  77 

The  canals  of  this  city  are  very  convenient,  but  many  of  them 
most  offensively  impure,  the  uniform  greenness  of  which  is  che- 
quered only  by  dead  cats,  dogs,  offal,  and  vegetable  substances  of 
every  kind,  which  are  left  to  putrefy  at  the  top,  until  the  canal 
scavengers,  who  are  employed  to  clean  the  canals,  remove  them : 
the  barges  which  are  used  on  these  occasions,  and  the  persons 
employed  in  them,  present  a  very  disgusting  appearance;  the  mud 
which  is  raised  by  them,  forms  most  excellent  manure,  and  the 
sum  it  fetches  in  Brabant,  is  calculated  to  be  equal  to  the  expenses 
of  the  voyage.  Some  of  the  most  eminent  Dutch  physicians 
maintain  that  the  effluvia  arising  from  the  floating  animal  and 
vegetable  matter  of  these  canals,  is  not  injurious,  and  in  proof, 
during  a  contagious  fever  which  ravaged  this  city,  it  was  observed, 
that  the  inhabitants  who  resided  nearest  to  the  foulest  canals,  were 
not  infected,  whilst  those  who  lived  near  purer  water,  only  in  few- 
instances  escaped;  but  this  by  no  means  confirms  the  assertion, 
because  those  inhabitants  who  lived  adjoining  to  foul  canals,  were 
enured  to  contagion  from  its  habitual  application,  for  the  same 
reason  that  medical  men  and  nurses  generally  escape  infection, 
from  being  so  constantly  exposed  to  it.  The  fair  criterion  would  be 
to  ascertain  whether,  when  the  city  is  healthy,  such  quarters  of  it 
continue  more  so.  The  effluvia  arising  from  putrid  animal  matter, 
by  the  medical  people  of  this  country,  and  of  almost  every  other, 
is  considered  far  from  being  innoxious,  but  infinitely  less  injurious 
than  that  evolved  by  the  decomposition  of  vegetables :  at  the  same 
time  there  are  many  offensive  smells  that  are  far  from  being  un- 
wholesome, for  instance,  that  of  the  bilge-water  of  a  ship,  and  others 
might  be  enumerated.  The  water  of  these  canals  is  in  general 
about  eight  or  nine  feet  deep,  and  the  mud  at  the  bottom  about: 
six  more.  Except  in  very  foggy  nights,  few  deaths  by  drowning-, 
considering  the  amount  of  the  population,  occur  in  these  canals, 
and  fewer  would  still  happen,  if  they  were  guarded  against  by  a 
railing,  which  is  rarely  erected  in  any  part  of  the  city.  At  night, 
as  the  city  is  well  lighted,  a  passenger,  unless  he  is  blind,  or  very 
much  inebriated,  a  disgraceful  condition,  which  as  I  have  before 

Z 


178  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

observed  is  not  often  displayed  in  Holland,  is  not  very  likely  to 
experience  a  watery  death. 

However,  to  guard  as  much  as  possible  against  the  gloomy 
consequence  of  these  casualties,  the  keepers  of  all  inns  and  taverns, 
and  all  apothecaries  in  Amsterdam,  and  in  every  other  city  in 
Holland,  are  compelled  under  a  heavy  penalty  to  keep  a  printed 
paper  containing  the  most  approved  method  of  resuscitating  the 
suspended  animation  of  drowned  persons,  in  a  conspicuous  part  of 
their  houses.  The  government  is  also  very  liberal  in  distributing 
rewards  to  those  who,  at  their  personal  peril,  rescue  a  fellow  crea- 
ture from  destruction.  Upon  such  occasions,  gold,  silver,  or  me- 
dals are  bestowed,  according  to  the  risk  and  rank  of  the  preserver. 
The  first  society  for  the  restoring  of  drowned  persons  was  formed 
in  this  city  in  1767,  and  the  utmost  encouragement  was  every 
where  given  throughout  the  united  provinces,  by  the  magistrates 
in  particular,  and  afterwards  by  the  states -general,  and  the  success 
of  it  has  been  equal  to  its  humanity.  To  the  Dutch  nation  the 
English  are  indebted  for  these  admirable  institutions,  by  which  so 
many  of  our  countrymen  have  at  various  times  been  snatched 
from  the  gripe  of  death,  and  restored  as  it  were  to  a  new  existence, 
and  to  their  agonized  families.  It  is  a  curious  circumstance  to  re- 
mark, that  the  visible  disarrangement  which  the  human  frame 
experiences,  from  being  a  considerable  time  in  water,  is  very  lit- 
tle, so  little  that  many  are  the  instances  where  the  sufferer  has,  in 
the  first  instance,  displayed  all  the  indicia  of  death,  and  has  within 
a  few  hours  been  enabled  to  thank  his  deliverer  in  person.  The 
body,  during  this  temporary  suspension  of  animation,  resembles  a 
clock,  upon  its  pendulum  being  accidently  stopped,  its  works  are 
not  mutilated  nor  shaken  out  of  their  proper  places,  but  are  com- 
petent to  renew  their  functions  the  moment  the  former  is  touched 
by  some  friendly  hand. 

As  a  memorable  illustration,  I  beg  to  relate  an  anecdote  of  an 
illustrious  hero  and  august  personage,  who  shedding  light  and 
happiness  upon  nearly  forty  millions  of  beings,  and  ruling  once 
the  most  extensive  empire  upon  the  face  of  the  earth,  felt  that  he 
added  a  new  ray  of  glory  and  happiness  to  his  imperial  dignity  in 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  179 

preserving,  by  his  own  perseverance,  a  miserable  fellow-creature 
from  a  watery  grave. 

In  one  of  the  journeys  which  his  Imperial  Majesty  the  Empe- 
ror Alexander  made  through  Poland,  as  he  was  riding  alone,  his 
attendants  being  considerably  behind  him,  on  the  banks  of  the 
little  river  Wilia,  which  flows  between  Kouna  and  Wilna  in 
Lithuania,  he  perceived  some  persons  assembled  near  the  edge  of 
the  water,  out  of  which  they  appeared  to  be  dragging  something; 
he  instantly  alighted,  and  on  approaching  the  spot,  found  it  to  be 
the  body  of  a  man  apparently  lifeless.  Urged  by  those  exalted  sen- 
sibilities which  regard  rank  and  power  only  as  bounties  delegated 
by  heaven  for  the  benefit  of  mankind,  the  monarch,  without  any 
other  assistance  than  that  of  the  ignorant  boors  about  him,  who 
from  his  uniform  could  only  conceive  him  to  be  an  officer  of  rank, 
drew  the  apparent  corpse  completely  from  the  water,  and  laid  it 
on  the  side  of  a  bank,  and  with  his  own'  hands  took  off  the  wet 
clothes  of  the  poor  sufferer,  and  began  to  rub  his  temples  and 
breast,  which  he  continued  to  do  for  a  considerable  time  with  the 
most  ardent  anxiety,  but  found  all  his  efforts  to  restore  animation 
ineffectual:  in  the  midst  of  this  humane  occupation,  the  Emperor 
was-  joined  by  the  gentlemen  of  his  suite,  amongst  whom  were 
Prince  Wolkousky,  and  Count  Liewen,  two  Russiarl%oblemen, 
and  Dr.  Weilly,  his  majesty's  principal  surgeon,  an  English  gen- 
tleman of  distinguished  professional  talents,  who  always  travels 
with,  and  is  scarcely  ever  from  his  majesty.  They  united  their  ex- 
ertions to  those  of  the  Emperor,  and  when  Dr.  Weilly  attempted, 
but  in  vain,  to  bleed  the  poor  creature,  his  majesty  supported  and 
chafed  his  arms,  and  lent  every  other  assistance  in  his  power :  for 
three  hours  were  they  thus  employed  with  all  the  ardour  of  hu- 
manity, but  saw  no  symptoms  of  returning  life,  and  Dr.  Weill y 
pronounced  the  patient  irrecoverable. 

Fatigued  as  the  Emperor  was  with  these  unceasing  exertions, 
he  would  not  relinquish  the  work  as  a  hopeless  one,  but  by  his 
own  example  and  language,  urged  and  encouraged  Dr.  Weilly  to 
renew  his  labours,  which,  solely  in  obedience  to  his  Imperial  Ma- 
jesty's wishes,  and  completely  despairing  of  success,  he  recom- 


180  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

menced;  and  as  the  whole  party  were  making  the  last  effort,  the 
emperor  had  the  inexpressible  satisfaction  of  seeing  the  blood  flow 
from  the  puncture,  and  of  hearing  a  faint  groan  issue  from  the 
lips  of  his  patient. 

The  emotions  of  his  Imperial  Majesty  at  this  moment  were 
indescribable,  and  in  the  fulness  of  his  transport  he  exclaimed 
in  French,  "  Great  God!  this  is  the  brightest  clay  of  my  life!"  and 
tears  of  joy  sparkled  in  his  eyes,  to  ratify  the  feelings  of  his  heart. 
Every  exertion  was  now  redoubled,  and  as  humanity  loves  to  dwell 
upon  the  minutest  circumstances  of  this  affecting  scene,  I  must 
not  omit  to  relate,  that  when  Dr.  Weilly  looked  round  for  some- 
thing to  stop  the  blood  with,  the  Emperor  with  vivid  promptitude 
took  out  his  handkerchief,  tore  it  in  pieces,  with  his  own  hands 
bound  the  sufferer's  arm,  and  remained  with  him  until  he  com- 
pletely recovered,  when  he  conveyed  him  to  a  place  where  proper 
care  could  be  administered  to  him;  at  parting,  he  ordered  him  a 
liberal  present  of  money,  and  afterwards,  upon  his  return  to  his 
capital,  as  if  grateful  to  him  for  so  large  a  portion  of  felicity, 
settled  a  pension  upon  him  and  his  family.  The  sensations  of  the 
patient,  when  he  was  informed  of  the  exalted  rank  of  his  preserver, 
can  be  better  felt  than  described.  The  poor  inhabitants  of  that  part 
of  Poland,  ^ho  were  but  rude  artists,  fabricated  four  snuff-boxes, 
on  the  lids  of  which  they  delineated,  as  well  as  they  were  able,  this 
striking  and  exemplary  event,  which  they  presented  to  the  Empe- 
ror and  the  gentlemen  who  assisted  him  in  this  work  of  humanity. 
Such  is  the  heart  of  a  prince,  who,  almost  unassailable  in  his  migh- 
ty empire,  and  moved  alone  by  the  elevated  desire  of  impeding 
the  gigantic  progress  of  a  power  which  aims  at  universal  domina- 
tion, renounced  all  the  pleasure  of  tranquillity,  and  at  the  head  of 
his  gallant  legions  thundered  at  the  gates  of  princes,  to  awaken 
them  from  their  fatal  lethargy,  and  to  invoke  them  to  oppose  the 
common  enemy  of  the  world. 

Alas!  the  solemn  invocation  was  faintly  and  imperfectly  obeyed. 
In  vain  did  the  heroic  Alexander  endeavour  to  impart  to  other 
chiefs,  whose  humiliation,  if  not  destruction,  must  be  the  fruits  of 
their  supineness,  that  divine  energy  which  actuated  his  own  bosom. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  181 

The  historian,  whilst  with  rapture  he  dwells  upon  the  valor  and 
the  disinterested  energy  of  Alexander,  with  burning  blushes  will 
relate  the  mournful  results  which  followed  the  dire  neglect  of  his 
solemn  and  unexampled  appeal.  To  his  renewed  struggles  in  this 
mighty  and  august  cause,  the  eyes  of  England,  with  whom  his 
name  will  ever  be  consecrated,  and  of  prostrate  nations  panting, 
without  the  spirit  to  contend  for  their  deliverance,  are  turned  with 
ardent  anxiety.  May  glory  crown  the  arms  of  such  a  prince,  and 
may  his  days  be  long  in  the  land! 

The  exchange  here  is  in  the  same  style  of  architecture  as 
that  of  Rotterdam,  but  larger.  My  astonishment  here  was  even 
greater  than  what  I  experienced  at  the  latter  place;  for,  at  the 
exchange  hour,  it  was  overflowing  with  merchants,  brokers,  agents, 
and  all  the  busy  motley  characters  who  belong  to  commerce. 
From  the  prevailing  activity,  the  appetite  for  accumulation  here 
appeared  to  have  experienced  no  checks  from  the  ineviatble  ca- 
lamities of  war.  My  surprise  was  augmented  by  reflecting,  with 
these  appearances  before  me,  upon  the  present  and  former  com- 
mercial condition  of  the  country.  The  principal  causes  which  con- 
tributed to  render  Amsterdam  so  rich  before  the  two  last  wars, 
were  the  invincible  industry,  the  caution,  and  frugality  of  the  peo- 
ple. The  ancient  merchants  of  Amsterdam  preferred  small  gains 
with  little  risk,  to  less  probable,  and  to  larger  profits:  it  was  their 
creed,  that  more  fortunes  were  raised  by  saving  and  economy, 
with  moderate  advantages,  than  by  bold,  expensive,  and  perilous 
speculations.  This  golden  rule  they  transmitted  to  their  posterity, 
who  have  exhibited  no  great  disposition  to  deviate  from  it.  A 
Dutch  merchant  of  the  present  day  almost  always  calculates  the 
chances  for  and  against  his  success  in  any  undertaking,  which  he 
will  immediately  relinquish  unless  they  are  very  greatly  in  his 
favour,  and  as  nearly  reducible  to  certainty  as  possible:  he  very 
rarely  over-trades  himself,  or  extends  his  schemes  beyond  his 
capital:  such  was  the  foundation  upon  which  the  commerce  of 
Amsterdam  was  raised. 

The  principal  sources  of  commercial  wealth  to  Holland  arose 
from  her  herring  and  Greenland  fisheries,  which  employed  a  great 


182  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

portion  of  her  population.  The  superior  manner  in  which  the 
Dutch  pickle  and  preserve  their  herrings  is  peculiar  to  themselves, 
nor  has  it  been  in  the  power  of  England,  or  any  other  country,  to 
find  out  the  secret  which  lies,  it  is  said,  in  the  manner  of  gilling 
and  salting  those  fish.  The  persons  who  are  acquainted  with  the 
art,  are  bound  by  an  oath  never  to  impart  it,  hitherto  religiously 
adhered  to,  and  the  disclosure  of  it  is  moreover  guarded  against 
by  the  laws  of  the  country.  This  national  source  of  wealth  has 
been  greatly  impeded,  in  consequence  of  the  Dutch  having  no 
herring  fisheries  of  their  own,  but  being  obliged  to  seek  them  on 
the  English  coast  at  the  proper  season,  where,  particularly  off  Yar- 
mouth, the  herring  shoals  have  been  known  to  be  six  and  seven 
feet  deep  with  fish.  The  permission  granted  to  the  Dutch  fisher- 
men, to  prosecute  their  occupation  unmolested  on  our  coasts,  not- 
withstanding the  war,  was  frequently  withdrawn  by  our  cruisers. 
Last  year  a  private  agreement  took  place  between  the  two  coun- 
tries, and  the  indulgence  was  renewed,  by  which  the  Dutch  were 
very  abundantly  supplied  with  their  favourite  fish :  so  much  es- 
teemed is  it,  that  the  first  herring  cured  was  always  presented  to 
the  stadtholder,  and  opulent  families  have  been  known  to  give 
seven  shillings,  and  even  a  guinea,  for  the  first  herrings  brought 
to  market. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  183 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

FORMER  COMMERCE  OF  THE  DUTCH BATAVIA ANECDOTES 

OF  NATIONAL  FRUGALITY EXCHANGE  AND  BANKING  BUSI- 
NESS  COMMERCIAL  HOUSE  OF  MESSRS.  HOPE JEW  FRUIT- 
SELLERS MARINE  SCHOOL THE  RASP-HOUSE THE  WORK- 
HOUSE  THE  PLANTATION PRIESTS    HOW    SUPPORTED 

PARISH  REGISTERS THE  POOR LITERARY  SOC  IETIES FE- 
LIX MER1TIS MODERN  DUTCH  PAINTERS. 

FOR  more  than  a  century  the  Dutch  East-India  Company 
enjoyed  the  monopoly  of  the  fine  spices,  comprehending  nutmegs, 
cloves,  mace,  cinnamon,  Sec.  which  constituted  the  principal  branch 
of  the  Asiatic  as  well  as  the  European  commerce  of  Holland: 
360,000/6s.  cloves  were  annually  sent  to  Europe,  and  about 
150,000/65.  were  sold  in  India;  250,000/6s.  of  nutmeg,  the  produce  of 
the  island  of  Banda,  used  to  be  sold  in  Europe,  and  lOOfiOOlbs.  in 
India.  In  Europe  also  400,000/&s.  of  cinnamon  used  to  be  brought 
to  market,  and  200,000/6s.  consumed  in  India.  Batavia  presents 
a  wonderful  instance  of  the  enterprise  of  the  Dutch,  who,  born 
themselves  in  a  marshy  country,  below  the  level  of  the  ocean, 
erected  a  kingdom  in  the  fifth  degree  of  north  latitude,  in  the 
most  prolific  part  of  the  globe,  where  the  fields  are  covered 
with  rice,  pepper,  and  cinnamon,  and  the  vines  bear  fruit  twice 
a  year.  Although  this  colony  remains  to  Holland,  the  Dutch 
spice  market  must  have  very  materially  suffered,  from  the  vigi- 
lance of  our  ships  of  war  in  various  parts  of  the  world,  and  parti- 
cularly from  the  recent  capture  of  her  valuable  spice  ships  returning 
home  richly  laden  from  that  colony.  The  Dutch  also  carried  on  a 
large  trade  in  rice,  cotton,  and  pepper,  and  the  Java  coffee,  which 
was  thought  to  be  second  only  to  that  of  Mocha.  The  reader  may, 
perhaps,  be  surprised  to  find  that  the  amount  of  the  spice  exports 
should  every  year  be  the  same.  The  Dutch  East  India  Company 


184       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

was  enabled  to  moke  this  calculation  in  consequence  of  having  ac- 
quired a  tolerably  exact  knowledge  of  the  quantity  of  each  kind  of 
spice  that  would  be  necessary  for  the  consumption  of  the  European 
markets,  and  never  permitting  any  more  to  be  exported.  In  this 
branch  of  trade  they  had  no  competition,  and  they  were  enabled  to 
keep  the  price  of  their  spices  as  high  as  they  chose,  by  ordering 
what  remained  unsold  at  the  price  they  had  fixed  upon  it,  to  be 
burnt.  Their  spices  gave  them  an  influence  upon  the  trade  of  the 
north  of  Europe,  in  consequence  of  their  being  highly  prized  by 
the  different  nations  on  the  shores  of  the  Baltic,  who  furnished  the 
Dutch  with  their  grain,  hemp,  flax,  iron,  pitch,  tar,  masts,  planks, 
Sec.  The  surrender  of  Curracoa  to  the  British  arms  must  also  be 
severely  felt.  This  island  was  always  of  great  importance  to  the 
Dutch,  the  possession  and  commerce  of  which  they  were  very  de- 
sirous of  retaining  and  extending.  The  Dutch  West  India  Com- 
pany, many  years  since,  refused  to  exchange  it  for  the  Spanisli 
island  of  Porto  Rico.  The  commerce  of  Curracoa  formerly  look 
up  yearly  about  fifty  large  ships,  upon  an  average  of  300  tons  each, 
and  the  quantity  of  goods  annually  shipped  from  Holland  amount- 
ed to  500,000/.  and  the  returns  nearly  doubled  that  sum.  The  ex- 
ports from  Holland  consisted  of  German  and  Dutch  linens,  checks, 
East  India  goods,  woollen  and  cotton  manufactures,  spices,  cinna- 
mon, building  materials,  and  many  other  articles  of  ease  and 
luxury.  The  imports  to  Europe  were  indigo,  coffee,  sugar,  hides, 
cotton,  dye-wood,  tortoiseshell,  varinas,  Porto  Rico  tobacco,  and 
occasionally  cochineal.  The  Dutch  also  carried  on  a  very  flourish- 
ing trade  to  Turkey  and  the  Levant,  by  selling  their  own,  the  Irish 
and  English  cloths,  and  purchasing  tea,  cocoa,  ginger,  and  thread. 
The  commercial  intercourse  also  between  Holland  and  England 
was  very  important,  in  which  the  balance  in  specie  was  greatly 
against  the  Dutch,  which  induced  many,  who  were  ignorant  of 
their  real  character,  to  conclude,  that  they  never  could  support  so 
prodigious  a  drain  of  specie  as  they  have  invariably  experienced 
in  such  communications;  an  impression  which  subsides  when  it  is 
considered  that  the  Dutch  consumed  but  little  of  what  they  im- 
ported from  England,  and  that  what  they  purchased  they  resold  in 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  185 

an  improved  condition  to  other  countries.  A  nation  can  only  be- 
come rich  from  trade  when  its  exports  for  the  use  of  foreign  states 
is  in  a  greater  proportion  than  its  imports  for  its  own  consumption. 
An  impression  has  gone  forth,  that  a  nation  cannot  be  impoverished 
if  the  importation  of  foreign  merchandize  be  purchased  abroad  by 
native  commodity  and  not  with  specie;  whereas  upon  a  nation 
striking  the  balance  of  her  account  with  the  country  she  may  have 
dealt  with,  it  will  be  found  that  the  deficiency  on  the  side  of  her 
exportation  must  be  made  up  in  specie.  Hence  an  industrious  and 
frugal  people  like  the  Dutch  will,  when  their  country  is  in  a  state 
of  tranquillity,  possess  great  advantages  over  most  other  nations. 
Industry  increases  the  native  commodity,  whether  it  arises  from 
the  soil  or  the  manufacture,  and  increases  the  exportation.  Frugal- 
ity will  lessen  the  consumption,  and  of  course  increase  the  expor- 
tation of  native,  and  reduce  the  importation  of  foreign  produce,  for 
home  consumption.  The  excess  of  all  native  commodities  is  sure 
of  a  market,  of  which  those  who  can  sell  the  cheapest  will  be  the 
masters :  hence  a  frugal  and  industrious  people  will  be  able  to  live 
and  accumulate,  where  those  who  are  neither  could  not  live.  This 
spirit  of  industry  and  frugality  has  been  for  ages,  and  still  con- 
tinues to  be  the  guardian  of  this  nation,  by  which  it  was  enabled 
to  support  its  many,  long,  and  costly  wars,  and  finally  to  force  the 
king  of  Spain,  its  ancient  master,  to  recognise  its  independent 
sovereignty.  Although  the  Hollanders,  befor6  the  last  war,  were 
the  undisputed  proprietors  of  the  Indian  spices,  of  the  silks  of 
India  and  China,  and  of  the  fine  cotton  manufactures  of  Indostan, 
till  a  period  at  no  great  distance  the  common  people  wore  plain 
woollen  cloth,  and  fed  on  fish  and  vegetables.  So  universally  pow- 
erful was  this  propensity  to  economy,  that  formerly  the  common 
people,  and  even  opulent  merchants,  never  changed  their  fashions, 
and  left  off  their  clothes  only  because  they  were  worn  out.  They 
have  been  known  to  purchase  the  coarse  English  cloth  for  their 
own  wear,  and  sell  their  own  fine  Leyden  cloths  to  Germany, 
Turkey,  Portugal,  and  other  countries:  they  also  bought  the 
cheapest  butter  and  cheese  in  the  north  of  England,  and  in  Ireland, 
for  their  own  consumption,  and  sent  the  best  of  those  articles  pro- 

U 


186  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

duced  in  their  own  country  to  foreign  markets.  The  wealth  which 
many  individuals  accumulated  by  their  parsimonious  habits  was 
astonishing.  The  following  anecdote  will  place  this  part  of  the  na- 
tional character  in  a  striking  point  of  view.  As  the  marquis  of 
Spinola  and  the  president  Richardot  were  going  to  the  Hague  in 
the  year  1608,  for  the  purpose  of  negotiating  a  truce  with  the 
Dutch,  they  saw  on  their  way  eight  or  nine  persons  step  out  of  a 
little  boat,  and  seat  themselves  upon  the  grass,  where  they  made  a 
frugal  repast  upon  some  bread,  cheese,  and  beer;  each  person  taking 
his  own  provisions  from  a  wallet  which  he  carried  behind  him. 
Upon  the  Spanish  ambassadors  inquiring  of  a  peasant  who  these 
travellers  were,  he  replied,  to  their  no  little  astonishment, "  they  are 
the  deputies  of  the  states,  our  sovereign  lords  and  masters."  Upon 
which  the  ambassadors  exclaimed,  u  We  shall  never  be  able  to  con- 
quer these  people ;  we  must  make  peace  with  them."  In  the  history 
of  Sparta  we  can  only  look  for  a  similar  instance  of  virtuous  simplicity. 
Another  source  from  which  Amsterdam  derived  great  wealth 
was  the  exchange  and  banking  business.  From  her  peculiar  situa- 
tion, vast  credit,  and  extensive  correspondence  with  every  nation 
upon  the  face  of  the  globe,  this  city  has  been  the  channel  through 
which  nearly  three  parts  of  the  money  remitted  from  one  state  to 
another  in  Europe  have  passed,  and  which  have  enriched  the  mer- 
chants by  the  customary  commissions  upon  such  remittances:  to 
which  may  be  added  the  duties  payable  upon  all  imports  received 
from  the  manufactures  of  the  western  part  of  Germany,  upon  all 
goods  which  in  their  transit  by  the  Rhine  and  by  the  Maas  to  fo- 
reign markets  must  pass  through  Amsterdam  or  Rotterdam,  from 
which  Holland  must  have  derived  a  considerable  revenue.  In  short, 
in  other  and  better  times,  the  trade  with  Great  Britain,  Persia, 
Russia,  Spain,  Portugal,  Italy,  Cochin  and  its  dependencies,  Mo- 
lucca, China,  Japan,  Norway,  Denmark,  Sweden,  Pomerania,  Li- 
vonia, the  possession  of  that  important  promontory  the  Cape  of 
Good  Hope,  and  the  commerce  of  the  Elbe,  the  Weser,  and  the 
Maas,  all  contributed  to  raise  Amsterdam  to  the  commercial  re- 
nown which  she  once  enjoyed.  Yet,  notwithstanding,  under  all  her 
difficulties,  arising  from  her  territorial  and  marine  losses  by  the 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  187 

war,  the  severity  of  the  English  blockade,  the  activity  of  the  Eng- 
lish cruizers,  and  of  the  French  privateers,  Holland  still  continues 
to  carry  on  a  considerable  intercourse  with  her  old  connexions 
through  the  medium  of  neutral  bottoms,  secured  by  insurances 
effected  frequently  at  the  enormous  premium  of  20/.  per  cent. 

To  return  to  the  Exchange  of  this  great  city:  I  was  much 
struck  with  the  confluence  of  people  which  surrounded  one  gen- 
tleman, who  stood  with  his  back  towards  one  of  the  pillars,  and 
were  very  eager  to  get  a  word  or  a  whisper  from  him :  upon  inquiry 
this  proved  to  be  the  acting  partner  of  the  house  of  Messrs.  Hope; 
a  house  that,  before  the  last  war,  could  at  any  time  dictate  the  ex- 
change to  Europe.  This  place  is  infested  by  a  great  number  of 
Jew  fruiterers,  who  practise  all  sorts  of  stratagems  to  set  off 
their  fruit,  such  as  pinning  the  stalk  of  a  fresh  melon  upon  the 
bottom  of  a  stale  and  rotten  one,  which  had  nearly  succeeded  with 
me.  The  melons  in  Holland  are  remarkably  fine;  and  as  a  proof 
of  their  cheapness,  I  need  only  mention,  that  one  morning,  when 
strolling  through  the  streets,  I  gave  no  more  than  the  value  of  ten 
pence  for  a  very  large  one,  exquisitely  flavoured. 

I  was  much  pleased  with  seeing  the  marine  school,  which, 
although  its  object  is  to  form  a  nursery  for  naval  officers,  was, 
strange  to  relate,  much  neglected  by  the  stadtholderian  govern- 
ment, and  was  originally  instituted,  and  afterwards  supported,  by 
the  patriotic  spirit  of  private  individuals.  The  pupils  are  the  chil- 
dren of  citizens  of  all  classes,  and  are  received  from  seven  to  twelve 
years  of  age,  upon  the  payment  of  a  very  moderate  yearly  stipend. 
Their  education  and  treatment  are  the  same  as  in  similar  institu- 
tions .here  and  in  other  countries.  In  the  yard  is  a  brig  completely 
rigged,  for  the  instruction  of  the  boys. 

In  the  north-east  part  of  the  city  stands  the  Rapshuys,  or  rasp- 
house,  in  which  criminals,  whose  offences  are  not  of  a  capital  nature, 
are  confined.  A  narrow  court  receding  from  the  street,  in  which 
are  the  keeper's  lodge  and  apartments  for  the  different  officers, 
form  the  entrance  of  this  prison.  Over  the  gate  are  some  insignifi- 
cant, painted,  wooden  figures,  representing  criminals  sawing  log- 
wood, and  Justice  holding  a  rod  over  them.  The  gaoler,  apparently 


188  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

a  good  naturcd,  merry  fellow,  showed  me  into  the  inner  court, 
forming  an  oblong  square,  on  three  sides  of  which  the  cells  of  the 
prisoners,  and  on  the  fourth  side  the  warehouses,  containing  the 
ground  dying  wood,  are  arranged.  This  yard  is  very  much  encum- 
bered with  piles  of  log-wood,  which  sadly  reduce  the  miserable 
pittance  of  space  allotted  for  the  prisoners  to  walk  in.  In  one 
corner,  in  terrorem,  is  a  whipping-post,  with  another  little  figure 
of  Justice  holding  a  rod.  In  this  yard  I  saw  some  of  the  men  saw- 
ing the  Campeachy-wood,  with  a  saw  of  prodigious  large  teeth, 
which  appeared  to  be  a  work  of  extreme  labour;  and  upon  my  so 
expressing  myself  to  the  gaoler,  through  my  lacquais  de  filace,  he 
informed  me,  that  at  first  it  required  a  painful  exertion  of  strength, 
but  that  the  prisoners  by  practice  were  enabled  to  saw  it  with  ease, 
and  to  supply  their  weekly  quota  of  two  hundred  pounds  weight  of 
sawed  pieces,  and  also  to  make  a  variety  of  little  articles  in  straw, 
bone,  wood,  and  copper,  to  sell  to  those  who  visited  the  prison. 
The  prison  dress  consists  of  a  jacket,  or  surtout  of  white  wolleh, 
white  shirts,  hats,  flannel  stockings,  and  leather  shoes.  The  con- 
duct of  these  unfortunate  persons  is  annually  reported  to  the  ma- 
gistrate, who  regulates  the  period  of  their  confinement,  where  the 
case  will  admit  of  an  exercise  of  discretion,  by  such  report. 

In  a  corner  of  the  yard  I  was  shown  a  cell,  in  which,  if  the  per- 
son who  is  confined  in  it  does  not  incessantly  pump  out  the  water 
let  into  it,  he  must  inevitably  be  drowned  ;  but  the  gaoler  informed 
me,  that  it  had  not  been  used  for  many  years,  and  that  it  was  now 
only  an  object  of  terror.  In  the  warehouses,  which  are  very  shabby, 
were  piles  of  rasped  wood  for  dyeing  various  colours;  amongst 
others,  the  Evonymus  Europxus,  the  Morus  Tinctoria,  and  the 
Hoemotoxylum  Campechionum.  I  was  informed,  that  women  who 
are  attached  to  the  prisoners,  are  permitted  to  visit  them  at  sta- 
ted periods,  without  any  restraint,  by  which  one  of  the  great  poli- 
tical objects  of  Holland,  the  encouragement  of  population,  does  not 
suffer  by  this  wholesome  separation  of  the  faulty  from  the  blame- 
less members  of  society.  The  number  of  prisoners  amounted  to 
124;  they  were  far  from  looking  healthy;  this  I  attributed  more  to 
the  height  of  the  walls  enclosing  the  yard,  which,  as  well  as  the 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  189 

number  of  logwood  piles,  must  greatly  impede  the  circulation  of 
the  air,  than  to  excess  of  toil  and  severity  of  treatment.  The  pri- 
soners are  not  encumbered  with  irons,  and  I  should  think  an  escape 
from  such  a  prison  might  be  easily  effected. 

From  the  rasp-house  I  proceeded  to  the  work-house,  in  the 
east  quarter  of  the  city,  close  to  the  Muider  and  Prince  Gragts,  an 
establishment  which  I  believe  has  no  parallel  in  the  world.  It  is  a 
vast  building:  the  purposes  to  which  it  is  applied  are  partly  cor- 
rectional and  partly  charitable.  The  number  of  persons  within  its 
walls,  when  I  saw  it,  amounted  to  seven  hundred  and  fifty  of  both 
sexes,  and  the  annual  expense  is  about  one  hundred  thousand  flo- 
rins. In  the  rooms  belonging  to  the  governors  and  directresses,  are 
some  exquisite  pictures  by  Vandyke,  Rembrandt,  and  Jordaens.  In 
a  vast  room  very  cleanly  kept  and  well  ventilated,  were  an  immense 
number  of  women,  occupied  in  sewing,  spinning,  &c;  amongst 
them  was  a  fine,  handsome,  hearty  looking  Irish  woman,  who 
had  been  confined  two  years  at  the  instance  of  her  husband,  for 
being  more  fond  of  a  little  true  Schidam  gin  than  of  her  liege 
spouse.  In  another  vast  apartment,  secured  by  massy  iron  railing 
and  grated  windows,  were  about  seventy  female  convicts,  who  ap- 
peared to  be  in  the  highest  state  of  discipline,  and  were  very  indus- 
triously and  silently  engaged  in  making  lace,  &c.  under  the  super- 
intendency  of  a  governess.  From  the  walls  of  the  room  were  sus- 
pended instruments  of  punishment,  such  as  scourges,  irons  for  the 
legs,  &c.  which,  we  were  informed,  were  not  spared  upon  the 
slightest  appearance  of  insubordination.  These  women  are  always 
kept  apart  from  the  rest.  The  wards  of  the  men,  and  the  school-rooms 
for  a  great  number  of  children,  who  are  educated  and  maintained 
under  the  same  roof,  as  well  as  the  dormitories,  were  in  the  high- 
est state  of  neatness.  In  another  part  of  this  building,  never  shown 
to  strangers,  were  confined  about  ten  young  ladies,  of  very  respec- 
table, and  some  of  very  high  families,  sent  there  by  their  parents 
or  friends  for  undutiful  deportment,  or  some  other  domestic  offence. 
They  are  compelled  to  wear  a  particular  dress  as  a  mark  of  de- 
gradation, obliged  to  work  a  stated  number  of  hours  a  day,  and  are 
occasionally  whipped:  they  are  kept  apart  by  themselves,  and  n© 


190  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

one  but  a  father,  mother,  brother,  or  sister,  can  see  them  during 
their  confinement,  and  then  only  by  an  order  from  one  of  the  di- 
rectors. Husbands  may  here,  upon  complaint  of  extravagance* 
drunkenness,  &c.  duly  proved,  send  their  wives  to  be  confined  and 
receive  the  discipline  of  the  house;  and  wives  their  husbands,  for 
two,  three,  and  four  years  together.  The  allowance  of  food  is  abun- 
dant and  good;  and  each  person  is  permitted  to  walk  for  a  proper 
time  in  the  courts  within  the  building,  which  are  spacious.  Every 
ward  is  kept  locked,  and  no  one  can  go  in  or  out  without  the  espe- 
cial permission  of  the  proper  officer. 

Close  to  this  place  is  the  plantation,  a  very  large  portion  of 
ground  within  the  city,  laid  out  in  avenues,  and  a  great  number  of 
little  gardens,  formed  into  several  divisions  by  streets  of  pretty 
country  and  summer-houses;  and  the  whole  is  surrounded  by  canals. 
To  this  rus  in  urbe,  such  of  the  citizens  and  their  families  repair  in 
the  summer  to  dine  or  drink  tea,  whose  finances,  or  spirit  of  eco- 
nomy will  not  admit  of  their  having  a  house  in  the  country.  To 
render  these  rural  indulgences  as  cheap  as  possible,  three  or  four 
families  join  in  renting  one  small  cottage,  or  perhaps  a  summer- 
house  and  garden.  Never  did  any  spot  devoted  to  the  pleasure  of 
nature  exhibit  more  silence  and  solemnity :  no  sports,  no  pastime, 
no  laugh  nor  gambol :  the  females  drink  their  tea  and  work,  and 
the  men  smoke  in  peaceful  taciturnity,  and  scarcely  move  their 
eyes  from  their  different  occupations,  unless  some  very  animating 
and  attractive  object  passes. 

In  my  way  from  the  plantation  to  the  elegant  country  residence 
of  a  Dutch  merchant  of  high  respectability,  I  passed,  a  few  miles 
from  Amsterdam,  two  burial  places  of  the  Jews,  who  wisely  bury 
their  dead  in  the  country  ;  the  other  inhabitants  follow  the  baneful 
practice  of  burying  in  the  churches  and  church-yards  in  the  city, 
where  the  catholics  deposit  their  dead  very  frequently  in  protestant 
churches.  In  Holland  the  honours  of  funeral  pomp  are  scarcely 
ever  displayed:  the  spirit  of  economy,  which  seems  to  be  the  tu- 
telar saint  of  these  moist  regions,  seldom  incurs  a  further  expense 
than  a  plain  coffin,  which  costs  little,  and  some  genuine  tears  or 
sighs,  which  cost  nothing.    To  describe  the  numerous  churches, 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  191 

chapels,  and  conventicles  of  the  religious  of  all  persuasions,  who 
since  the  revolution  live  in  cordial  amity  with  each  other,  and  with 
the  government,  under  which  they  enjoy  the  rights  of  equal  citi- 
zenship, would  be  a  laborious  and  not  a  very  interesting  labour. 
The  quakers  here,  and  in  every  other  town  in  Holland,  are  very 
few:  the  Jews  and  the  anabaptists  are  very  numerous,  and  there 
are  many  Roman  catholics.  Before  the  revolution  the  clergy  of  the 
established  church  were  paid  by  the  government ;  they,  as  well  as 
every  other  priest  or  pastor,  are  now  supported  at  fixed  salaries, 
raised  rateably  amongst  the  inhabitants  of  the  parishes  in  which 
they  officiate,  each  sect  supporting  its  own  minister.  In  every  pa- 
rish registers  of  births,  marriages,  and  deaths  are  regularly  kept. 
The  church-yards  are  not  disgraced,  like  ours,  with  low  facetious 
epitaphs,  more  calculated  to  make  the  living  merry,  than  to  lead 
them  to  serious  meditation.  Each  parish  maintains  its  own  poor, 
under  the  control  of  a  council.  They  have  also,  as  with  us,  out- 
door poor.  The  sabbath  is  kept  in  Holland  with  the  same  solem- 
nity as  in  England.  The  great  number  of  noble  charitable  institu- 
tions in  Amsterdam,  in  which  the  sick  and  the  friendless  of  all 
persuasions  are  received  and  cherished,  without  any  recommen- 
dation but  that  of  affliction,  cannot  fail  to  impress  a  stranger  with 
admiration,  though  to  enumerate  them  here  would  not  be  very 
entertaining  to  the  reader. 

There  are  several  literary  societies  in  Amsterdam,  which  are 
supported  with  equal  spirit  and  liberality.  The  Felix  Mentis  is 
the  principal  public  institute;  it  is  supported  by  private  subscrip- 
tions :  no  money  is  paid  upon  admission;  foreigners  are  admitted 
with  a  subscriber's  ticket,  but  no  native  can  be  received  unless  he 
is  a  subscriber.  This  place  is  a  large  building,  containing  some 
fine  apartments,  particularly  the  music-room,  which,  during  the 
concerts,  is  much  resorted  to  by  the  most  opulent  and  fashionable 
families,  many  of  whom  play,  with  the  assistance  of  professional 
performers.  There  are  also  rooms  devoted  to  philosophy  and  the 
arts.  In  the  painting-room  I  was  shown  some  works  of  the  mo- 
dern Dutch  painters,  which  were  not  above  mediocrity;  they  ap- 
pear to  have  lost  that  exquisite  art  of  colouring,  which  so  emi- 


192 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 


nently  distinguished  their  predecessors"  This  circumstance  is  very- 
singular,  considering  how  many  ingenious  artists  this  city  has 
produced,  amongst  whom  may  be  enumerated  the  three  Does, 
Griffier,  Schellinks,  the  celebrated  Adrian,  and  William  Vander- 
velde,  &c.  M.  Smit,  and  Mr.  De  Winter,  very  opulent  merchants, 
have  a  fine  collection  of  paintings.  Mr.  Van  Brenton  has  also 
a  valuable  cabinet,  in  which  are  the  on4y  Venetian  pictures  sup- 
posed to  be  in  Holland ;  and  in  the  surgery  is  a  noble  picture  by 
Rembrandt. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND,  193 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

THE  DUTCH  THEATRE. ...THEATRICAL  TRAFFIC. ...THE    RONDELL 

....SINGULAR  VILLAGE    OF    BROCK SAARDAM COTTAGE    OF 

PETER  THE  GREAT. ...CLIMATE,  DIVISIONS,  AND  POPULATION 
OF. HOLLAND. ...JOURNEY  TO  ZEYST.... DUTCH  FOND  OF  COFFEE.... 
SMALL  FARMS.. ..PICTURE  OF  A  DUTCH  PEASANT'S  NEST. ...EF- 
FECTS   OF     INDUSTRY PALACE      OF      SOESTDYKE PYRAMID 

RAISED  IN  HONOUR  OF  BONAPARTE. ...SOCIETY  OF  HERRENHU- 
THERS.. ..THEIR  HOUSE  AND  INTERNAL  ARRANGEMENTS  DE- 
SCRIBED. 

THE  Dutch  theatre  is  large  and  handsome,  and  has  a  noble 
front.  On  the  night  I  was  there,  Madam  Wattier  performed ;  she 
occupies  the  same  place  in  the  public  estimation  in  Holland  as  the 
immortal  Siddons  does  in  that  of  England:  she  is  advanced  in 
years,  but  still  continues  to  display  great  tragic  qualities :  at  the 
same  time  her  manner  is  rather  too  vehement  for  an  English  au- 
ditor. The  principal  dancer  in  the  ballet  was  Mademoiselle  Polly, 
who  dances  with  great  agility.  The  scenery  is  good.  During  the 
interval  between  the  acts,  the  people  quit  the  house,  to  take  re- 
freshments and  walk  in  the  open  air:  upon  these  occasions  the 
national  spirit  is  again  displayed :  as  there  is  no  half-price,  little 
boys  hover  round  the  doors,  and  bid  upon  each  other  for  the  pur- 
chase of  the  re-admission  tickets  of  those  who  come  out,  for  the 
purpose  of  re-selling  them  at  a  profit.  The  French  theatre  is  small 
but  neat,  and  tolerably  well  supplied  with  performers.  After  the 
play  it  is  usual  to  go  out  to  the  Rondell,  where  the  higher  classes 
of  the  women  of  the  town  assemble  to  waltz.  This  assembly-room, 
like  the  spill-house  of  Rotterdam,  is  frequented  by  tradesmen,  their 
wives  and  their  children.  After  hearing  so  much  of  this  place,  I 
was  greatly  disappointed  on  viewing  it.  The  assembly-room  is 
small  and  shabby,  the  music  wretched,  and  adjoining  is  a  small 

2  B 


194  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

square  court,  with  three  or  four  trees  in  it,  scantily  decorated  with 
about  a  dozen  lamps.  Such  is  the  celebrated  Rondell  of  Amster- 
dam., which  the  Dutch  who  have  never  visited  England  contend  is 
superior  to  our  Vauxhall. 

With  a  large  and  very  agreeable  party,  I  made  an  excursion 
into  North  Holland,  where  we  visited  Brock,  one  of  the  most  cu- 
rious, and  one  of  the  prettiest  villages  in  Holland.  The  streets  are 
divided  by  little  rivulets;  the  houses  and  summer-houses,  formed 
of  wood  painted  green  and  white,  are  very  handsome,  though 
whimsical  in  their  shape,  and  are  all  remarkably  neat.  They  are 
Jike  so  many  mausoleums,  for  the  silence  of  death  reigns  through- 
out the  place.  The  inhabitants,  who  have  formed  a  peculiar  asso- 
ciation amongst  themselves,  scarcely  ever  admit  a  stranger  within 
their  doors,  and  hold  but  little  intercourse  with  each  other.  During 
our  stay,  we  saw  only  the  faces  of  two  of  them,  and  those  by  a 
stealthy  peep.  They  are  very  rich,  so  much  so,  that  many  of  their 
culinary  utensils  are  of  solid  gold.  The  shutters  of  the  windows  in 
front  of  the  houses  are  always  kept  shut,  and  the  principal  entrance 
is  never  opened  but  on  the  marriage  or  the  death  of  one  of  the 
family.  The  pavement  of  the  street  is  tesselated  with  all  sorts  of 
little  pebbles  and  cockle-shells,  and  is  kept  in  such  exquisite  or- 
der, that  a  dog  or  a  cat  is  never  seen  to  trespass  upon  it ;  and  it 
is  said,  that  formerly  there  was  a  law  which  obliged  all  passengers 
to  take  off  their  shoes  in  the  summer  when  they  walked  upon  it ; 
that  a  man  was  once  reprimanded  for  sneezing  in  the  streets;  and 
latterly,  a  clergyman,  upon  being  appointed  to  fill  the  church  on 
the  demise  of  a  very  old  predecessor,  was  treated  with  great  shy- 
ness by  his  flock  because  he  did  not  (unwittingly)  take  off  his  shoes 
■when  he  ascended  the  pulpit.  The  gardens  of  this  village  produce 
deer,  dogs,  peacocks,  chairs,  tables,  and  ladders,  cut  out  in  box.  Such 
a  museum  of  vegetable  statuary  I  never  witnessed  before.  Brock 
represent^  a  sprightly  ball-room  well  lighted  up,  without  a  soul  in. 
the  orchestra  or  upon  the  floor.  From  Brock  we  proceeded  to 
Saardam,  which  at  a  small  distance  seems  to  be  a  city  of  wind- 
mills. The  houses  are  principally  built  of  wood,  every  one  of  which 
has  a  little  fantastic  baby-sort  of  garden.  Government  has  discon- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  195 

firmed  building  ships  of  war  here,  which  used  to  be  a  source  of 
great  prosperity  to  the  town ;  however,  its  numerous  paper  and 
sawing  mills  employ  a  vast  number  of  hands,  and  produce  great 
opulence  to  the  place.  We  paid  our  homage  to  the  wooden  cot- 
tage where  Peter  the  Great  resided  when  he  came  to  this  place  to 
learn  the  art  of  ship-building ;  it  is  very  small,  and  stands  in  a 
garden,  and  is  in  tolerable  preservation.  The  women  in  North 
Holland  are  said  to  be  handsomer  than  in  any  other  part  of  the 
country.  As  I  was  very  desirous  of  commencing  my  tour  on  the 
Rhine,  I  was  glad  to  return  to  Amsterdam. 

The  climate  of  Holtend  is  moist,  but  far  from  being  unpleasant 
or  unwholesome,  although  some  travellers  have  thought  proper  to 
say  it  consists  of  six  months  of  rain  and  six  months  of  bad  wea- 
ther. The  principal  divisions  of  the  country  are  at  present  the 
same  as  they  were  during  the  republic,  namely,  Holland,  Overys- 
sel,  Zealand,  Friesland,  Utrecht,  Groningen,  Guelderland,  and 
Zutphen,  besides  the  Texel  and  other  islands;  but  the  king  has  it 
in  contemplation,  it  is  said,  of  speedily  dividing  the  kingdom  into 
ten  departments.  Holland  contains  113  cities  or  large  towns,  1400 
villages,  and  nearly  2,800,000  inhabitants.  The  military  force  of 
Holland  amounts  to  about  40,000  cavalry  and  infantry.  A  popula- 
tion and  a  force  which  cannot  but  astonish  the  reader,  when  he  re- 
flects upon  the  size,  soil,  and  position  of  the  country. 

I  intended  to  have  taken  the  treckschuyt  to  Utrecht,  as  the 
river  Amstel  is  all  the  way  lined  with  the  most  beautiful  country- 
houses  and  grounds  in  Holland ;  but  as  some  friends  of  mine  in 
Amsterdam  obligingly  proposed  accompanying  me,  and  were 
strongly  desirous  that  I  should  see  Naarden,  Soestdyke,  and  some 
other  places  in  our  way,  the  boat  was  relinquished  for  the  carriage. 
I  however  recommend  the  traveller  not  to  omit  going  to  Utrecht 
by  water.  Excellent  carriages  and  horses  are  always  to  be  pro- 
cured at  a  large  livery  stable  keeper's  who  resides  near  the 
Utrecktsche  Poort,  or  Utrecht  Gate,  in  Amsterdam,  close  to  the 
house  from  which  the  Utrecht  treckschuyts  proceed:  for  these  he 
must  make  the  best  bargain  he  can,  as  he  will  be  wholly  at  the 
mercy  of  the  proprietor.  The  inconvenience  and  imposition  arising 


196  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

from  travelling  in  Holland  are  frequently  severely  felt,  on  account 
of  there  being  no  regular  posting.  In  Amsterdam  the  price  of  a 
carriage  for  the  day  is  fourteen  florins,  and  for  this  the  coachman 
provides  for  himself  and  horses.  The  back  of  our  carriage  towards 
the  horses,  folded  into  two  divisions,  resting  upon  the  fixed  seat, 
so  that  when  the  cushion  was  placed  upon  it,  the  seat  was  only  a 
little  raised;  thus  the  coach  became  either  close  or  open:  the 
roof  was  fixed.  In  this  vehicle,  with  a  pair  of  good  horses,  we  set 
off  for  Naarden,  a  clean,  pretty  little  town,  and  more  skilfully  and 
strongly  fortified  than  any  other  town  in  Holland:  here  the  same 
tranquillity  reigns  as  in  most  of  the  other  Dutch  country  towns. 
From  the  ramparts,  which  present  a  very  agreeable  walk,  there  is 
a  fine  view  of  the  Zuyder  Zee  on  the  northern  side,  the  water  of 
which  being  in  many  places  very  shallow,  at  a  distance  resembled 
moving  mounds  of  sand.  Here,  and  throughout  the  journey,  our 
coachman  gave  the  preference  to  coffee,  of  which  the  Dutch  are 
remarkably  fond,  instead  of  wine  or  spirits,  with  his  dinner.  From 
economy,  as  I  observed  at  this  place  and  elsewhere,  the  middling 
people  keep  a  bit  of  sugar-candy  in  their  mouth  when  they  drink 
tea  or  coffee,  instead  of  using  sugar  in  the  way  we  do.  Our  host 
regaled  us  after  dinner  with  a  volunteer  desert  of  some  very  deli- 
cious pears,  which  grew  in  very  great  profusion  in  his  garden. 

From  this  place  to  Soestdyke,  one  of  the  two  country  palaces 
of  the  king  allowed  by  the  constitution,  the  roads  are  very  sandy, 
and  we  were  obliged  to  take  four  horses.  In  the  neighbourhood  of 
Naarden  the  country  is  covered  with  buck-wheat;  which,  after  we 
had  advanced  about  four  English  miles,  began  to  undulated,  and 
present  a  very  beautiful  appearance.  The  many  spires  and  chim- 
nies  of  villages  peeping  above  the  trees  in  all  directions,  the  small 
divisions  of  land,  the  neat  and  numerous  little  farm-houses  which 
abounded  on  all  sides  of  us,  presented  a  picture  of  industry  and 
prosperity  seldom  seen  in  any  other  country.  The  sound  wisdom 
displayed  by  the  Dutch  in  preventing  the  overgrowth  and  consoli- 
dation of  farms,  cannot  fail  to  strike  the  observation  of  the  traveller, 
and  particularly  an  English  one.  By  this  admirable  policy,  Holland 
is  enabled  to  maintain  its  comparatively  immense  population,  under 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.       1 97 

the  great  disadvantage  of  a  soil  far  from  being:  genial;  hence  it  is 
but  little  burthened  with  paupers,  and  hence  the  abundance  of  its 
provision.  In  England,  on  the  contrary)  the  farmers,  grown  opu- 
lent by  availing  themselves  of  the  calamities  of  unproductive  sea- 
sons, and  consequent  scarcity,  have  for  many  years  past  omitted  no 
opportunity,  by  grasping  at  every  purchase,  to  enlarge  their  estates, 
and  hence  a  portion  of  land  which,  if  separated  into  small  allot- 
ments, would  give  food  and  a  moderate  profit,  to  many  families,  is 
now  monopolized  by  one;  and  those  who  ought  to  be  farmers  on  a 
small  scale,  are  now  obliged  to  toil  as  labourers  in  the  fields  of 
their  employer,  at  wages  that  are  not  sufficient,  if  their  families 
are  numerous,  to  prevent  the  necessity  of  their  applying  for  pa- 
rochial aid.  If  some  legislative  provision  could  be  effected  to  restrain 
this  monstrous  and  growing  evil,  by  that  ardent  and  cordial  lover 
of  his  country,  and  particularly  of  the  lower  classes  of  society,  Mr. 
Whitbread,  who  has  laudably  in  parliament  applied  his  enlight- 
ened mind  to  ameliorate  the  condition  of  the  poor,  it  would  be 
one  of  the  most  beneficial  measures  that  ever  received  the  fiat  of 
the  British  senate.  I  do  not  repine  to  see  the  farmers,  or  any  other 
respectable  class  of  men,  receive  and  enjoy  the  honest  fruits  of 
their  own  enterprize  and  industry :  I  could  see  with  less  regret 
all  those  decent  and  frugal  habits  of  the  farm  which  once  cha- 
racterized the  yeomanry  of  England  superseded  by  the  folly  and 
fashion  of  the  gay  and  dissipated;  the  farmer  drinking  his  bottle 
of  port  instead  of  some  cheap  salubrious  ale ;  his  daughter,  no 
longer  brought  up  in  the  dairy,  returning  from  a  boarding-school, 
to  mingle  the  sounds  of  her  harp  with  the  lowing  of  cows,  or  re- 
luctantly going  to  the  market  of  the  adjoining  town,  tricked  out 
in  aukward.  misplaced  finery,  with  a  goose  in  one  hand  and  a  para- 
sol in  the  other,  did  not  the  poor  classes  of  society  become  poorer, 
and  the  humble  more  humiliated,  by  the  cause  of  this  marvellous 
metamorphosis  in  rural  economy.  In  Holland,  I  was  well  informed, 
there  is  not  a  farm  that  exceeds  fifty  acres,  and  very  few  of  that 
extent.  There  the  economy  observed  in  and  about  the  "  peasant's 
nest,"  is  truly  gratifying:  the  farmer,  his  wife,  and  a  numerous 
progeny,  exhibit  fares  of  health  and  happiness ;  their  dwelling  ia 


198  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

remarkable  for  its  neatness  and  order  throughout ;  in  the  orchard 
behind,  abounding  with  all  sorts  of  delicious  fruits,  the  pigs  and 
sheep  fatten;  three  or  four  sleeky  cows  feed  in  a  luxuriant  adjoin- 
ing meadow ;  the  corn  land  is  covered  with  turkies  and  fowls,  and 
the  ponds  with  ducks  and  geese.  Such  is  the  picture  of  a  Dutch 
farm. 

Notwithstanding  the  enormous  tax  upon  land,  and  a  tax  upon 
cattle  per  head,  an  imposition  unknown  to  any  other  country,  the 
expence  of  contributing  to  the  support  of  the  dykes,  the  duty  on 
salt,  and  a  variety  of  other  charges,  amounting  to  more  than  fifty 
per  cent,  on  the  value  of  their  land,  the  beneficial  effects  arising 
from  small  farms  and  the  simplicity,  diligence,  and  economy  of 
the  Dutch  farmer,  enable  him  to  discharge  those  expences,  and 
his  rent,  with  punctuality,  and  with  the  surplus  of  his  profit  to 
support  his  family  in  great  comfort.  To  these  causes  alone  can  be 
attributed  the  astonishing  supplies  which  are  sent  to  the  different 
markets.  North  Holland,  so  celebrated  for  its  cheese,  supplies 
Enkuysen,  upon  an  average,  with  two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand 
pounds  Weight  of  that  valuable  article  of  life,  and  Alkmaar  with 
three  hundred  thousand,  per  week.  In  a  very  small  space  in  the 
isle  of  Amak,  within  about  two  English  miles  of  Copenhagen,  no 
less  than  four  thousand  people,  descendants  of  a  colony  from 
East  Friesland,  invited  over  by  one  of  the  kings  of  Denmark  to 
supply  the  city  with  milk,  cheese,  butter,  and  vegetables,  are  en- 
abled to  live  and  flourish,  and  continue  to  supply  that  city  with 
these  articles.  I  remember  being  highly  delighted  with  seeing 
their  dwellings  and  little  luxuriant  gardens ;  nor  did  I  ever  see  so 
many  persons  living  within  so  small  a  space,  except  in  an  en- 
campment. An  experienced  English  agriculturist  who  had  visited 
Holland,  informed  me  that  he  thought  the  Dutch  farmers  did  not 
sufficiently  dress  their  land.  The  vegetable  soil  is  in  general  so 
thin,  that  trees  in  exposed  situations  are  usually  topped,  to  pre- 
vent their  being  thrown  down  by  the  wind.  In  that  part  of  Holland 
which  I  am  describing,  on  account  of  its  being  well  sheltered,  there 
is  a  large  growth  of  wood.  Upon  leaving  the  romantic  and  exqui- 
sitely picturesque  village  of  Baren,  we  entered  the  royal  chace, 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  199 

which  occupies  a  vast  track  of  ground :  in  this  forest  the  trees  are 
generally  poor  and  thin,  but  I  saw  some  fine  beeches  among  them. 
On  the  borders  of  this  chase  are  two  country  villas,  in  the  shape  of 
pagodas,  belonging  to  a  private  gentleman,  the  novelty  and  gaudy 
colouring  of  which  served  to  animate  the  sombre  appearance  of 
the  forest  behind. 

In  the  evening  we  reached  the  principal  inn  at  Soestdyke,  lying 
at  the  end  of  a  very  long  avenue  in  the  forest,  chiefly  filled  with 
young  oaks,  a  little  fatigued  with  the  tedium  produced  by  the  heavy 
roads  through  which  we  had  waded  ;  however,  after  some  refresh- 
ing tea  taken  under  the  trees,  near  the  house,  we  proceeded  to 
view  the  palace,  formerly  a  favourite  sporting  chateau  of  the  Orange 
family.  A  tolerable  plain  brick  house  on  the  left  of  the  entrance, 
composed  the  lodge,  and  after  passing  through  a  large  court,  we  as- 
cended by  a  flight  of  steps  to  the  principal  entrance  of  this  palace,  if 
palace  it  may  be  called,  for  a  residence  more  unworthy  of  a  prince 
I  have  never  seen.  The  only  part  of  the  house  in  any  degree  de- 
serving of  notice  was  the  hall,  the  sides  of  which  were  decorated 
with  the  emblems  of  rural  recreation,  the  implements  of  husband- 
ry, and  all  the  apparatus  of  hunting,  fishing,  and  shooting,  toler- 
ably well  executed.  The  rooms  were  principally  white-washed,  and 
destitute  of  furniture  :  the  windows  were  large,  and  the  panes  of 
glass  very  small,  fastened  with  lead,  such  as  are  used  in  cottages: 
in  short,  the  whole  palace  presented  the  appearance  of  a  country 
mansion  in  England  of  the  date  of  Charles  the  First,  deserted  by 
the  family  to  whom  it  belonged,  and  left  to  the  care  of  the  ten- 
ants who  rent  the  estate  to  which  it  belongs.  Nothing  could  be 
more  dreary  and  desolate.  The  king  and  queen  partook  of  a  cold 
collation  here  a  short  time  before  I  visited  it,  provided  by  the  fa- 
mily who  rented  the  place  of  the  state,  and  occupied  it  when  we 
visited  it.  I  was  not  surprised  to  hear  that  the  royal  family  staid 
only  one  hour,  during  which  they  scarcely  ventured  out  of  a  large 
naked  room  at  the  back  part  of  the  house,  called  the  grand  saloon: 
one  of  the  young  princes  gave  a  son  of  the  gentleman  who  occu- 
pied the  premises,  an  elegant  watch  set  round  with  brilliants.  I 
rould  not  help  reflecting  a  little  upon  the  disgust  this  visit  must 


200  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

have  given  to  the  queen,  who  had  just  arrived  from  Paris,  and  from 
all  the  voluptuous  and  tasteful  magnificence  of  the  new  imperial 
court.  The  palace  is  surrounded  by  a  ditch  half  filled  with  green 
stagnant  water,  the  dulness  of  which  was  only  relieved  by  the 
croaking  of  a  legion  of  undisturbed  frogs.  The  gardens  and 
grounds,  which  abounded  with  hares,  are  very  formally  disposed 
into  dull,  unshaded,  geometrical  walks.  After  supper,  a  brilliant 
moon  and  cloudless  night,  attracted  us  into  one  of  the  most  beau- 
tiful and  majestic  avenues  of  beeches  I  ever  saw,  immediately  op- 
posite the  palace:  as  we  sat  upon  a  bench,  looking  through  an  ope- 
ning upon  the  bright  bespangled  heavens,  the  description  of  our 
divine  bard  stole  upon  my  mind: 

Look  how  the  floor  of  heaven 

Is  thick  inlaid  with  patterns  of  bright  gold! 
There's  not  the  smallest  orb,  which  thou  behold'st, 
But  in  its  motion  like  an  angel  sings. 

Merchant  of  Venice,  Act  I.  Sc.  1- 

In  this  wood  are  several  genteel  country-houses,  many  of 
which  were  formerly  occupied  by  those  who  belonged  to  the 
Orange  court.  The  inn  here  is  much  frequented,  the  accommo- 
dations of  which  are  good,  by  the  people  of  Amsterdam,  who 
frequently  make  parties  to  it ;  and  it  is  the  great  resort  of  those 
married  couples  fresh  from  the  altar,  until  the  honey-moon  is  in 
her  wane. 

In  the  morning  about  five  o'clock  we  set  off  for  Zeyst,  or 
Ziest,  and  passed  through  a  large  tract  of  champagne  country, 
interspersed  with  short  brushwood,  the  dull  monotony  of  which 
was  at  last  relieved  by  a  vast  pyramid,  erected  by  the  French 
troops  who  were  encamped  in  the  immense  open  space  in  which 
it  stands,  amounting  to  30,000  men,  under  the  command  of  Gen 
Marmont.  On  the  four  sides  are  the  following  inscriptions: 

INSCRIPTION  ON  THE  GRAND  FRONT. 

"  This  pyramid  was  raised  to  the  august  Emperor  of  the 
French,  Napoleon  the  First,  by  the  troops  encamped  in  the  plain 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  201 

of  Zeyst,  being  a  part  of  the  French  and  Batavian  army,  comman- 
ded by  the  Commander  in  Chief,  Marmont." 

INSCRIPTION  ON  THE  SECOND  FRONT. 

Battles  gained  by  the  Emperor. 

"  The  battles  of  Montenotte,  de  Dego,  and  Millesimo,  of 
Mondovi,  the  passage  of  the  Po,  the  battle  of  Lodi,  the  engage- 
ment of  Berguetto,  the  passage  of  the  Mincio,  the  battles  of 
Lonato,  of  Castiglione,  of  the  Brenta,  of  St  Georges,  of  Areola,  of 
la  Favourite,  of  Chebreis,  of  Sediman,  of  Montabor,  of  Aboukir, 
of  Marengo. 

Wherever  he  fought  he  was  victorious. 
Through  him  the  empire  of  France  was  enlarged  by  one  third. 
He  filled  the  world  with  his  glory." 

INSCRIPTION   ON  THE  THIRD  FRONT. 

"  He  terminated  the  civil  war;  he  destroyed  all  cabals,  and 
caused  a  wise  liberty  to  succeed  to  anarchy ;  he  re-established 
religious  worship,  he  restored  the  public  credit,  he  enriched  the 
public  treasury,  he  repaired  the  roads  and  constructed  new  ones, 
he  made  harbours  and  canals,  he  caused  the  arts  and  sciences  to 
prosper,  he  ameliorated  the  condition  of  the  soldiers,  the  general 
peace  was  his  work. 

ON  THE  FOURTH  FRONT. 

"  The  troops  encamped  in  the  plains  of  Zeyst,  making  part  of 
the  French  and  Batavian  army,  commanded  by  the  General  in 
Chief  Marmont,  and  under  his  orders,  by  the  Generals  of  division, 
Grouchy,  Boudet,  Vignolle,  the  Batavian  Lieutenant,  General 
Dumonceau,  the  Generals  of  Brigade,  Soyez,  Sec.  [here  follows  a 
long  list  of  the  names  of  the  other  officers,  too  tedious  to  enume- 
rate; also  a  very  long  list  of  the  different  divisions  of  the  regi- 
ments to  which  the  above  officers  belonged,]  have  erected  this 
monument  to  the  glory  of  the  emperor  of  the  French,  Napoleon 
the  First,  at  the  epoch  of  his  ascending  the  throne,  and  as  a  token 

of  admiration  and  love,  generals,  officers,  and  soldiers,  have  aft 

2  C 


202  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

co-operated  with  equal  ardour :  it  was  commenced  the  24th  Fruc- 
tidor,  12  ami,  and  finished  in  thirty-two  days" 

The  whole  was  designed  by  the  chief  of  the  battalion  of  engi- 
neers. The  total  height  of  this  stupendous  monument  is  about  36 
metres,  or  110  French  feet;  that  of  the  obelisk,  exclusive  of  the 
socle,  is  about  13  metres,  or  42  French  feet.  One  end  of  the  base 
of  the  pyramid  is  48  metres,  or  148  feet.  From  the  summit  of  the 
obelisk  the  eye  ranges  over  a  vast  extent  of  country,  Utrecht, 
Amersfort,  Amsterdam,  Haarlem,  the  Hague,  Dordrecht,  Leyden, 
Gorcum,  Breda,  Arnheim,  Nimeguen,  Bois  le  Due,  Cleves,  Zut- 
phen,  Dewenter,  Swol,  and  a  great  part  of  the  Zuyder  Zee,  may 
be  distinctly  seen  on  a  fine  clear  day. 

Upon  this  spot  it  is  in  contemplation  immediately  to  erect  a 
new  city,  the  building  of  which,  and  the  cutting  of  a  canal  to  be 
connected  with  the  adjoining  navigation,  have  already  commenced. 
Zeyst  is  a  very  handsome  town,  or  rather  an  assemblage  of  coun- 
try houses,  it  abounds  writh  agreeable  plantations  and  pleasant 
woods,  and  is  much  frequented  in  the  summer  by  the  middling 
classes  of  wealthy  merchants  from  Amsterdam,  who  sit  under  the 
trees  and  smoke  with  profound  gravity,  occasionally  looking  at 
those  who  pass,  without  feeling  any  inclination  to  move  themselves: 
what  an  enviable  state  of  indifference  to  all  the  bustle  and  broil  of 
this  world !  upon  which  they  seem  to  gaze  as  if  they  were  sent 
into  it  to  be  spectators  and  not  actors.  Who,  upon  reflection  and 
sobejr  comparison,  would  not  prefer  this  "  even  tenour"  to  the  peril 
of  the  chace  and  the  fever  of  dog-day  balls ! 

The  principal  hotel  here  is  upon  a  noble  scale,  the  politest  at- 
tentions are  paid  to  strangers,  and  the  charges  are  far  from  being 
extravagant.  The  only  striking  object  of  curiosity  in  the  town  is  a 
very  spacious  building,  formerly  belonging  to  Count  Zinzendorf, 
and  now  to  a  fraternity  of  ingenious  and  industrious  Germans, 
amounting  to  eighty  persons,  who  have  formed  themselves  into  a 
rational  and  liberal  society,  called  the  Herrenhuthers,  or  Mora- 
vians. This  immense  house,  in  its  object,  though  not  in  its  appear- 
ance, resembles  our  Exeter  'Change,  but  infinitely  more  the  splen- 
did depot  of  goods  of  every  description,  kept  by  a  very  wealthy 
and  highly  respectable  Englishman  of  the  name  of  Hoy  at  Peters- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  203 

burgh.  Upon  ringing  at  the  principal  entrance,  we  were  received 
with  politeness  by  one  of  the  brotherhood,  in  the  dress  of  a  layman, 
who  unlocked  it  and  conducted  us  into  ten  good  sized  rooms,  each 
containing  every  article  of  those  trades  most  useful,  such  as  watch- 
makers, silversmiths,  saddlers,  milliners,  grocers,  &c.  Many  of 
these  articles  are  manufactured  by  the  brethren  who  have  been 
tutored  in  England,  or  have  been  imported  from  our  country.  The 
artificers  work  upon  the  basement  story,  at  the  back  of  the  house, 
and  no  sound  of  trade  is  heard ;  on  the  contrary,  the  tranquillity  of 
a  monastery  pervades  the  whole. 

After  inspecting  the  different  shop-rooms,  it  will  repay  the 
trouble  of  the  traveller  to  make  interest  to  see  the  other  part  of 
the  premises,  shown  only  upon  particular  application.  The  refec- 
tory is  a  large  room,  kept  with  great  cleanliness ;  and  the  meals 
of  the  fraternity,  if  I  may  judge  by  so  much  of  the  dinner  as  was 
placed  upon  the'  table,  are  very  far  from  partaking  of  the  simple 
fare  of  conventual  austerity.  A  bon  vivant  would  have  risen  from 
their  table  without  a  murmer.  In  this  room  were  several  music- 
stands,  used  every  other  evening  at  a  concert ;  the  vocal  and  instru- 
mental music  of  which  is  supplied  by  certain  members  of  the 
brotherhood,  who  I  was  told  excelled  in  that  elegant  accomplish- 
ment. In  the  chapel,  which  was  remarkably  neat,  there  was  an 
organ,  and  on  the  wall  was  a  very  energetic  address  from  one  of 
the  society  upon  his  retiring  from  it,  handsomely  framed  and 
glazed.  The  dormitory  upon  the  top  of  the  house  partook  of  the 
same  spirit  of  cleanliness  and  order.  Never  was  any  sectarian  as- 
sociation formed  upon  more  liberal  and  comfortable  principles.  In 
short,  it  is  a  society  of  amiable,  industrious,  and  agreeable  men, 
who  form  a  coalition  of  ingenuity  and  diligence  for  their  support, 
and  benevolently  remit  the  surplus  of  their  income,  after  defraying 
their  own  expenses,  to  their  brethren  established  in  the  East  and 
West  Indies,  and  other  parts  of  the  world.  They  marry  whenever 
they  please ;  but  those  who  taste  of  this  blissful  state  are  not 
permitted  to  have  chambers  in  the  house,  although  they  may 
contribute  their  labours,  and  receive  their  quota  of  subsistence 
from  it. 


204       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

THE  MALL  OF  UTRECHT... .A  GASCONADE... THE  RHINE. ..CONQUEST 
OF  UTRECHT. ...THE  CATHEDRAL. ...BEAUTIFUL  LINES. ...ANEC- 
DOTES OF  DISTINGUISHED  PERSONS  BORN  AT  UTRECHT. ...THE 
ANCIENT    INHABITANTS.. ..A    DIRECTION. ...THE    CITY    OF    ARN- 

HEIM.... ANECDOTE    OF    BECK....DUTCHY    OF    BERG....CLEVES 

ANECDOTE  OF  THIRK...A  TEDIOUS  FORM. ..ANECDOTE  OF  BROWN 

BREAD THE     CONTRAST THE    RECEPTION BONAPARTE'S 

HATRED  OF  ENGLISH. 

AFTER  we  had  amused  ourselves  with  roving  about  this 
agreeable  place,  we  set  off  for  Utrecht.  I  have  before  mentioned 
the  manner  in  which  the  Dutch  compute  distances,  and  although 
I  had  for  some  time  been  accustomed  to  hear  hours  substituted  for 
miles,  yet  as  I  was  no  longer  on  the  canals,  it  sounded  somewhat 
strange  to  hear  a  charming  lady  of  our  party  observe,  which  she 
did  with  perfect  Dutch  propriety,  when  we  were  speaking  of  the 
probable  time  in  which  we  should  arrive  at  Utrecht :  "  Surely  our 
horses  must  be  poor  indeed  if  they  cannot  go  six  hours  in  three  " 
Our  road  lay  through  a  very  rich  and  beautiful  country,  well  drain- 
ed, abounding  with  neat  compact  little  farms,  orchards,  wood  plan- 
tations, the  lofty  arid  venerable  towers  of  Utrecht  appearing  full 
in  our  view  all  the  way.  We  passed  by  the  mall,  which  has  a 
handsome  stone  entrance,  is  upwards  of  a  mile  in  length,  and  is 
bordered  with  a  triple  row  of  trees,  with  a  carriage-road  on  each 
side.  When  this  city  surrendered  to  the  arms  of  Louis  the  Four- 
teenth in  1672,  he  was  uncommonly  delighted  with  this  walk,  yet, 
from  knowing  that  it  was  equally  admired  by  the  citizens,  he 
threatened  to  have  every  tree  felled  to  the  ground,  unless  they 
raised  a  very  large  contribution,  which  was  immediately  produced,- 
and  the  mall  preserved.  If  the  menace  of  the  conqueror  was  sin- 
cere, which  I  can  scarcely  believe,  he  united  the  tasteless  barba- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND,  205 

rism  of  a  Vandal  to  the  ferocious  rapacity  of  a  tyrant.  Louis  over- 
ran this  province,  and  the  greatest  part  of  Guelderland,  Overyssel, 
and  Holland,  at  the  head  of  one  hundred  thousand  men,  in  less  fhan 
a  month,  a  rapidity  of  victory  almost  incredible,  though  infinitely 
surpassed  by  the  arms  of  France  in  the  present  times.  The  pro- 
gress of  the  French  king  was  celebrated  in  the  following  gasconade: 

Una  dies  Lotharos,  Burg-undos  hebdomas  una, 
Una  domat  Batavos  luna,  quid  annus  erit  ? 

I  think  Utrecht  one  of  the  most  beautiful  cities  in  Holland, 
next  to  the  Hague,  which  it  is  said  to  exceed  in  size.  The  streets 
are  wide,  and  the  buildings  handsome,  amongst  which  the  hand  of 
the  Spanish  architect  is  frequently  to  be  traced.  The  canals  are 
about  twenty  feet  below  the  street ;  and  the  access  to  them  for  the 
servants  of  the  adjoining  houses  is  by  a  subterranean  passage. 
These  canals  are  very  much  neglected,  and  were  covered  in  all 
directions  with  cabbage-stalks,  leaves,  and  other  vegetable  sub- 
stances, left  to  putrify  upon  the  surface.  There  I  first  beheld  a 
branch  of  the  Rhine  unmingled  with  other  waters.  This  mighty 
river  has  partaken  of  the  mutability  to  which  every  thing  sublu- 
nary is  subjected.  Near  the  village  of  Cooten,  about  twelve  miles 
from  Utrecht,  the  traveller  may  contemplate  corn  waiving  and  cat- 
tle depasturing  where  once  it  rolled  its  broad  majestic  waters,  now 
diminished  to  a  little  streamlet:  its  division  into  the  two  great  co- 
pious and  navigable  streams  takes  place  a  little  above  Nimeguen: 
the  right  branch  retains  the  name  of  the  Rhine ;  the  left  is  called 
the  Waal,  a  word  expressive  of  a  defensive  boundary,  which  sepa- 
rated the  ancient  Batavians  from  their  hostile  neighbours  on 
the  southern  border:  the  former,  during  its  superabundance,  pro- 
duced a  small  branch  called  the  Lack,  which  ran  near  the  little 
city  of  Wyk,  by  Deurstede,  directed  its  course  towards  Utrecht, 
upon  which  it  bestowed  the  name  of  Ultra  trajectum,  passed 
through  Woerden  Leyden,  and  disembogued  itself  into  the  Ger- 
man Ocean  at  Catvvyk:  the  latter  branch  in  rolling  its  waters  to- 
ward the  sea,  incorporated  with  the  Maas,  and  their  united  streams 
were  called  the  New  Maas,  under  which  name  they  flow  by  Dort.. 


206  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

Rotterdam,  and  other  cities,  into  the  sea.  Had  rivers  tongues,  as 
poets  feign  they  have,  this  much-injured  branch  of  the  Rhine 
might  have  exclaimed  with  Wolsey,  I  now  am  left 


to  tl 


le  mercy 


Of  a  rude  stream,  that  must  for  ever  hide  me. 

Upon  the  subsiding  of  a  great  inundation,  the  frequent  terror 
of  the  Low-countries,  it  was  found  that  the  Rhine  had  changed  its 
channels,  and  flowed  into  that  of  the  Lack,  to  which  it  had  given 
birth,  in  consequence  of  its  channel  having  been  amazingly  deep- 
ened by  the  watery  irruption.  This  branch,  in  consequence  of  the 
power  of  its  waters  not  being  able  to  bear  down  the  obstructions 
opposed  to  it,  is  not  able  to  force  its  way  to  the  sea,  and  is  stopped 
in  its  course  near  the  village  of  Catwyk  by  mountains  of  accumu- 
lated sand,  and  being  compelled  to  regurgitate,  is  distributed  over, 
and  lost  in  the  neighbouring  canals. 

The  French,  under  Louis  the  Fourteenth,  retained  possession 
of  Utrecht  for  little  more  than  a  year,  during  which  the  magnifi- 
cent monarch  was  so  delighted  with  the  place,  that  he  held  his 
court  here  in  great  gaiety  and  splendor;  but  the  Dutch  were 
heartily  rejoiced  to  be  relieved  of  this  honour,  and  hailed  with  ex- 
ultation the  hour  in  which  with  his  troops  he  retired  from  the 
country;  this  movement  however,  was  preceded  by  the  demolition 
of  their  fortifications,  raising  heavy  contributions,  and  exercising 
many  wanton  acts  of  cruelty  and  oppression,  which  excited  such 
disgust,  that  nearly  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  province  resolved 
upon  transporting  themselves  to  Batavia.  Although  by  this  con- 
quest the  French  had  left  an  indelible  impression  of  disgust  be- 
hind them,  and  the  regular  forces  of  the  town  amounted  to  seven 
thousand  men,  and  the  inhabitants  breathed  nothing  but  vengeance 
against  the  Prince  of  Orange,  this  city  surrendered  to  the  arms  of 
Prussia,  who  espoused  his  cause,  in  the  year  1787.  The  rhyngrave 
of  Salm,  who  had  the  command  of  the  troops,  covered  himself 
with  great  disgrace,  by  this  unresisting,  cowardly,  and,  as  it  was 
generally  believed,  treacherous  surrender  of  the  place.  In  1795, 
when  the  French  troops  once  more  approached  the  town,  its  gates 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  207 

were  again  thrown  open,  and  they  were  received  more  as  brethren 
than  as  conquerors ;  but  the  inhabitants  very  soon  repented  of  this 
second  visit,  for  the  impositions  they  levied  were  extremely  severe, 
and  the  French  officers  selected  the  best  rooms  in  the  best  houses 
for  their  quarters,  to  the  great  inconvenience  of  families  so  oppres- 
sed. Upon  two  or  three  doors  of  very  elegant  mansions  I  saw  little 
boards  fastened,  with  the  names  and  rank  of  the  French  officers 
who  had  taken  up  their  lodgings  within.  The  cathedral  must  once 
have  been  an  enormous  and  magnificent  structure,  if  I  may  judge 
by  the  doom  or  tower,  the  only  part  which  remains  perfect.  The 
ruins  present  a  fine  specimen  of  the  Gothic,  some  of  the  ornaments 
of  which  were  in  high  preservation,  and  very  beautiful.  In  the 
cloisters  there  is  an  arch,  the  pillars  of  which  are  apparently  fas- 
tened with  ropes,  which  upon  examination  prove  to  be  done  in 
stone,  and  admirably  executed.  The  tower  is  of  the  astonishing 
height  of  464  feet,  and  from  the  top,  on  a  clear  day,  no  less  than 
fifty-one  walled  cities  and  towns  may  be  seen ;  and  the  pyramid 
erected  in  honour  of  Napoleon  at  Zeyst  presents  a  noble  appear- 
ance in  this  expanded  view.  About  midway  in  our  ascent,  we  en- 
tered a  vast  vaulted  chamber  with  galleries  in  it,  in  which  two  old 
women  reside,  who,  if  they  require  it,  supply  the  visitors  with 
schidam  and  biscuits  to  refresh  themselves  in  their  ascension, 
which  are  presented  to  them  in  a  little  room,  the  windows  of  which 
are  scarcely  visible  to  the  beholder  on  the  outside,  commanding  a 
very  wide  and  agreeable  prospect.  Upon  top  of  the  tower  there  is 
a  very  numerous  and  fine-toned  set  of  chimes.  The  ramparts  are 
about  four  miles  round  the  tower,  and  afford  a  very  agreeable  and 
picturesque  walk.  Utrecht  was  once  a  rich  and  powerful  see,  the 
bishops  of  which  were  sovereign  princes,  who  laying  the  crosier 
aside,  and  assuming  the  sword,  frequently  waged  bloody  warfare 
with  their  rivals  the  prince  bishops  of  Leyden. 

The  same  causes  which  have  thinned  the  number  of  students 
of  Leyden,  have  reduced  those  of  Utrecht,  which  do  not  exceed 
360,  most  of  whom  are  the  sons  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  city. 
Two-thirds  of  the  merchants  of  this  place  have  connexions  with 
London.  There  are  several  endowments  of  a  charitable  nature, 


208  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

which  do  honour  to  the  city,  many  of  which  were  originally  insti- 
tuted, and  principally  supported  by  English  families  resident  here 
before  the  revolution.  A  botanic  garden  has  lately  been  formed 
near  the  dome  of  the  cathedral ;  it  is  upon  a  small  scale,  but  ap- 
peared to  be  well  arranged.  In  one  of  the  gardens  close  to  the  city, 
was  a  naked  little  statue  of  Cupid,  without  arrows  or  wings,  with 
the  following  beautiful  inscription  under  it : 

N'  offrant  qu'un  coeur  a  la  beaute, 
Nud  comme  la  verite, 
Sans  armes  comme  PInnocence, 
Sans  ailes  comme  la  Constance, 
Tel  fut  1' Amour  dans  le  siecle  d'or, 
On  ne  le  trouve  plus,  quoiqu'  on  le  cherche  encore. 

To  Beauty  give  your  heart,  your  sighs, 

No  other  offering  will  she  prize; 

As  Truth  should  unadorn'd  appear 

Behold  !  the  God  is  naked  here. 

Like  Innocence,  he  has  no  arms 

But  those  of  sweet,  of  native  charms; 

No- wish  or  power  has  he  to  fly, 

Like  thy  pure  spirit,  Constancy  ! 

Such  in  the  golden  age  was  Love  ! 

But  now,  oh!  whither  does  he  rove  !  J..C 

In  the  gardens  of  Chantilly,  the  little  god  appears  in  the  same 
manner,  and  is  celebrated  in  the  same  exquisite  lines. 

A  traveller  can  scarcely  enter  a  town  in  Holland  which  has 
not  given  birth  to  some  genius,  whose  fame  reflects  lustre  upon 
his  country.  Utrecht  enrols  amongst  those  illustrious  sages  who 
resided,  or  were  born  within  its  walls,  and  who  have  bestowed 
upon  it  immortal  celebrity,  the  learned  Gronovius,  the  critic ; 
Grrevius,  his  pupil,  one  of  the  most  profound  writers  of  the  middle 
of  the  sixteenth  century,  so  well  known  for  his  Thesaurus  Anti- 
quitatum  et  Historiarum  Italian,  in  thirteen  folio  volumes,  and  the 
two  erudite  Burmans.  Doctor  Johnson  thus  speaks  of  Peter  Bur- 
man,  and  Gronovius,  and  Grxvius,  "  One  of  the  qualities  which 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  209 

contributed  eminently  to  qualify  Grxvius  for  an  instructor  of  youth, 
was  the  sagacity  by  which  he  readily  discovered  the  predominant 
faculty  of  each  pupil,  and  the  peculiar  designation  by  which  nature 
has  allotted  him  to  any  species  of  literature  and  by  which  he  was 
soon  able  to  determine  that  Peter  Burman  was  remarkably  adapted 
to  classical  studies,  and  to  predict  the  great  advance  he  would 
make  by  industriously  pursuing  the  direction  of  his  genius.  On 
the  other  hand,  animated  by  the  encouragement  of  a  tutor  so  ce- 
lebrated as  Gnevius,  Peter  Burman,  by  continuing  the  vigour  of 
his  application,  fulfilled  his  master's  prophecy;  and  it  has  been 
asserted,  that  he  passed  honourably  and  fairly  through  the  classes, 
and  was  admitted  into  the  university  at  the  age  of  thirteen. 

"  His  biographer  allows  this  to  have  been  so  stupendous  a  pro- 
gress as  to  surpass  the  limitsof  all  probability;  of  which  indeed  every 
man  must  be  sensible,  who  considers  that  it  is  not  uncommon  for 
the  highest  genius  in  our  country,  to  be  entangled  for  ten  years 
in  those  thorny  paths  of  literature,  which  Burman  is  represented  to 
have  passed  in  less  than  two.  But  this  prodigy  has  been  cleared  up 
very  satisfactorily  by  the  following  observation.  In  the  universities 
of  foreign  countries,  they  have  professors  of  philology  or  human- 
ity, whose  employment  is  to  instruct  the  younger  classes  in  gram- 
mar, rhetoric,  and  languages;  nor  do  they  engage  in  the  study  of 
philosophy,  till  they  have  passed  through  a  course  of  philological 
lectures  and  exercises,  to  which  in  some  places  two  years  are 
commonly  allotted:  whereas  the  English  scheme  of  education, 
which,  with  regard  to  academical  studies,  is  more  rigorous,  and 
sets  literary  honours  at  a  higher  price  than  that  of  any  other 
country,  exacts  from  the  youth  who  are  initiated  in  our  colleges 
a  degree  of  philological  knowledge  sufficient  to  qualify  them  for 
lectures  on  philosophy,  which  are  read  to  them  in  Latin,  and  to  ena- 
ble them  to  proceed  in  other  studies  without  assistance;  so  that  it 
may  be  conjectured  that  Burman,  at  his  entrance  into  the  university 
of  Leyden,  had  no  such  skill  in  languages,  nor  such  ability  of 
composition,  as  are  frequently  to  be  met  with  in  the  higher  classes 
of  an  English  school ;  nor  was  perhaps,  at  that  time,  md*re  than 

2D 


210  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

moderately  skilled  in  Latin,  and  taught  the  first  rudiments  of 
Greek." 

At  Utrecht  was  also  born,  in  1459,  pope  Adrian  VI.  to 
whom  the  emperor  Maximilian  entrusted  the  education  of  his  son, 
Charles  the  Fifth,  and  who  afterwards  filled  the  pontifical  throne 
with  piety  and  learning,  with  dignity  and  mildness:  this  distin- 
guished personage,  after  having  acquired  his  classical  knowledge 
at  the  university  of  this  city,  and  his  philosophical  at  the  college 
of  Louvain,  received  the  degree  of  doctor  in  divinity  in  1491, 
the  expense  of  which  he  was  unable  to  sustain,  and  which  was 
defrayed  by  Margaret,  sister  to  Edward  IV.  of  England.  I  was 
informed  that  the  house  he  resided  in,  a  fine  Gothic  building,  was 
still  standing,  and  that  it  was  adorned  with  several  curious  basso- 
relievos,  but  time  would  not  permit  me  to  visit  the  venerable  re- 
mains. This  city  had  also  the  honour  of  producing  the  Chevalier 
Antonio  More,  who  was  born  here  in  1519,  where  he  studied 
under  John  Schoorel,  with  whom,  having  made  considerable  pro- 
gress, he  improved  himself  in  design  at  Rome,  and  in  the  true 
principles  of  colouring  at  Venice:  oneof  his  historical  compositions, 
from  the  subject  of  the  Resurrection,  was  in  such  high  estimation 
as  to  be  publicly  exhibited  at  the  fair  at  St.  Germains,  before  it 
was  purchased  by  the  prince  of  Conde.  More  has  the  reputation 
of  having  imitated  nature  very  closely  and  happily ;  his  manner  is 
strong,  just,  and  bold,  and  in  his  portraits  there  is  great  character 
and  life.  He  was  much  esteemed  by  the  emperor  Charles  V.  and 
was  by  him  sent  to  Portugal  to  paint  the  portraits  of  the  king,  the 
queen,  who  was  the  sister  of  the  emperor,  and  their  daughter, 
afterwards  the  queen  of  Spain.  For  these  portraits  he  received  six 
hundred  ducats,  and  many  valuable  presents ;  and  to  show  their 
admiration  of  his  talents,  the  Portuguese  nobility  presented  him, 
in  the  name  of  that  order,  with  a  chain  of  gold  valued  at  a  thousand 
ducats.  He  was  employed  by  most  of  the  princes  of  Europe,  and 
at  every  court  his  paintings  excited  universal  applause.  Queen 
Mary  the  First  of  England,  presented  him  with  a  chain  of  gold 
and  a  pension.  Upon  his  quitting  London  and  settling  in  Spain,  a 
singular  circumstance  belei  him:  one  day  as  the  king,  who  was 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  211 

very  fond  of  him,  and  his  great  patron,  was  talking  to  him  in  a 
very  familiar  manner,  he  gave  More  in  jocularity  a  sharp  tap  on 
the  arm,  which  the  irritable  painter  mistaking  for  indignity,  instead 
of  an  act  of  good  humour  and  condescension,  resented  by  striking 
the  king  with  his  maulstick:  a  folly  which  had  nearly  in  its  con- 
sequence proved  fatal  to  him,  and  which  compelled  him  to  quit 
the  country  with  all  possible  celerity.  His  last  work  was  the  Cir- 
cumcision, intended  for  the  cathedral  church  at  Antwerp,  but 
which  he  did  not  live  to  finish. 

Cornelius  Poelemburg,  another  artist  of  high  distinction,  was 
born  at  Utrecht  in  1586.  He  first  studied  under  Abraham  Bloe- 
mart,  and  afterwards,  upon  going  to  Rome,  became  enamoured 
with  the  works  of  that  divine  artist,  Raphael,  whose  exquisite  grace 
in  the  nude  figure  he  endeavoured  to  imitate.  His  style  was  en- 
tirely new,  and  he  surpassed  all  his  contemporaries  in  the  delica- 
cy of  his  touch,  in  the  sweetness  of  his  colouring,  and  in  the  selec- 
tion of  fortunate  objects  and  situations.  His  skies  are  clear,  light, 
and  transparent ;  and  his  female  figures,  which  are  generally  re- 
presented naked,  are  equally  elegant  and  beautiful.  The  Italians 
were  highly  delighted  with  his  works,  and  some  of  the  cardinals 
of  Rome,  of  the  finest  taste,  frequently  attended  his  painting  room, 
to  observe  his  extraordinary  and  happy  manner  of  working.  Upon 
his  leaving  Rome,  the  grand  duke  of  Florence  paid  him  great 
honours,  and  he  was  received  with  distinction  in  every  city  through 
which  he  passed.  It  is  recorded  to  the  honour  of  Rubens,  that  after 
paying  him  a  friendly  visit,  and  expressing  the  greatest  pleasure 
from  examining  the  works  of  Poelemburg,  he  purchased  and  be- 
spoke several  of  his  pictures,  for  his  own  cabinet;  this  noble  con- 
duct at  once  gave  the  stamp  of  currency  to  the  works  of  the  latter, 
and  advanced  his  reputation  and  his  fortune  together.  Our  refined 
and  munificent  Charles  the  First  invited  him  to  his  court,  and 
nobly  recompensed  him  for  his  labors,  but  he  vainly  endeavoured, 
by  his  princely  encouragement,  to  prevail  upon  him  to  settle  in 
England;  the  indelible  love  of  his  country  prevailed  over  every 
other  consideration,  and  he"  returned  to.  his  native  country,  where 
he  lived  in  affluence  and  esteem,  and  where  he  continued  to  paint  to 


212  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

the  last  day  of  his  life,  which  was  in  the  year  1660,  at  the  great 
age  of  seventy-four. 

Utrecht  seems  to  have  the  fairest  pretensions  to  have  given 
birth  to  Anthony  Waterloo,  before  slightly  mentioned;  an  honour 
disputed  with  much  ardor  of  rivalship  by  Amsterdam  and  other 
cities.  The  landscapes  of  this  admirable  artist  are  in  the  highest 
estimation,  and  are  the  closet  copies  of  nature,  without  the  aid  of 
meretricious  decoration.  His  favourite  subjects  were  woody  scenes, 
embellished  with  water,  and  figures  and  cattle  added  by  Weenix 
and  other  artists:  the  variety  in  the  verdure  of  his  trees  and  grounds, 
the  very  tint  of  which  illustrates  the  hour  of  the  day  and  the  season 
of  the  year  in  which  they  were  taken,  and  the  wonderful  transpa- 
rency of  his  water,  remain  unrivalled.  Although  the  works  of  this 
great  artist  produced  high  prices,  he  expired  in  great  penury  in  the 
hospital  of  St.  Job,  near  Utrecht.  John  Glauber,  called  Polidore, 
another  eminent  artist,  was  born  here  in  1 656 :  he  was  a  disciple  of 
the  admirable  Berghem,  but  a  passion  for  travelling  induced  him  to 
quit  his  master,  to  contemplate  the  sublime  objects  of  nature  in  Ita- 
ly. In  his  way  he  remained  at  Paris  one  year  with  Picart,  a  flower 
painter,  and  at  Lyons  two  years  with  Adrian  Vander  Cabel,  with 
whom  he  intended  to  have  staid  longer,  had  he  not  been  attracted 
by  a  great  number  of  people  who  were  going  to  the  jubilee,  to 
proceed  direct  to  Rome,  where  he  continued  for  two  years,  inde- 
fatigably  pursuing  the  means  of  improving  himself  in  his  art,  and 
from  thence  he  went  to  Venice.  Upon  his  return  to  Holland  he 
settled  at  Amsterdam,  where  he  lodged  with  Gerard  Lairesse,  in 
whose  house  an  academy  of  arts  was  established.  These  distin- 
guished artists  were  united  together  by  the  same  passion  for  their 
art,  and  the  same  elevation  of  mind,  improved  by  their  having  tra- 
velled through  the  same  countries  :  by  this  friendship  the  beautiful 
landscapes  of  Glauber  became  enriched  by  the  graceful  figures  of 
Lairesse.  Glauber  ranks  amongst  the  finest  landscape  painters  of 
the  Flemish  school.  The  most  frequent  subjects  of  his  pencil  he 
derived  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Rome  and  the  Alps,  and 
his  style  resembles  that  of  Gaspar  Poussin;  his  colouring  is  warm 
and  true,  his  invention  very  luxuriant  j  and  although  his  pictures 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  213 

are  exquisitely  finished,  they  appear  as  if  they  had  been  produced 
with  perfect  facility ;  his  touch  is  so  peculiarly  just  and  natural, 
that  every  distinct  species  of  trees  or  plants  may  be  distinguished 
by  the  characteristic  exactness  of  the  leafing.  The  two  brothers, 
John  and  Andrew  Bott,  were  born  in  this  city  in  the  beginning  of 
the  sixteenth  century ;  the  former  a  landscape  painter,  and  the 
latter  a  painter  of  figures:  they  both  resided  many  years  in  Italy. 
John  made  Claude  Lorraine  his  model,  whose  style  he  imitated 
with  uncommon  success,  as  did  Andrew  that  of  Bamboccio.  They 
were  much  attached  to  each  other,  and  painted  in  conjunction : 
their  united  efforts  seem  to  be  the  happy  result  of  one  masterly 
hand.  Andrew  was  unfortunately  drowned  in  one  of  the  canals  of 
Venice  whilst  with  his  brother,  in  1650,  who  returned  to  Utrecht 
overwhelmed  with  grief,  which  he  consoled  by  an  unabated  pur- 
suit of  the  art  he  adored.  The  works  of  John  are  of  inestimable 
value,  and  eagerly  sought  after  by  connoisseurs. 

Gallantry  forbids  my  passing  over  the  name  of  Anna  Maria 
Schurman,  born  here  in  1607:  she  was  profoundly  versed  in  lan- 
guages, displayed  great  skill  and  taste  in  painting,  as  well  as  in 
every  other  branch  of  the  graphic  and  elegant  arts:  she  was  ho- 
noured with  a  visit  from  Christina,  queen  of  Sweden,  who  pronoun- 
ced the  most  enthusiastic  encomiums  on  her  elegant  attainments. 
This  celebrated  woman  died  at  the  age  of  seventy-one.  There  are 
other  artists  who  do  honour  to  this  their  native  city,  but  I  have 
mentioned  those  of  the  first  order,  in  number  and  reputation  per- 
fectly sufficient  to  establish  the  pretensions  of  Utrecht  to  high  rank 
in  the  roll  of  renowned  cities.  I  quitted  this  beautiful  place,  the 
prosperity  of  which  has  suffered  much  by  the  war  with  England, 
about  four  o'clock  on  a  beautiful  autumnal  morning,  and  proceeded 
to  Arnheim,  which  and  Nimeguen,  are  the  capital  cities  of  Guel- 
derland.  This  beautiful  and  valuable  province  contains  twenty-two 
considerable  towns,  and  upwards  of  three  hundred  villages.  The 
Menopii  Gugerni,  Usipetes,  and  Secambri,  mentioned  in  Cesar's 
Commentaries,  are  supposed  to  have  been  its  ancient  inhabitants. 
Guelderland,  remarkable  for  the  salubrity  of  its  climate  and  the 
fertility  of  its  soil,  abounds  with  the  most  romantic  variety  of  see- 


214  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

nery,  mountain  and  valley,  and  is  well  stocked  in  every  direction 
with  fine  cattle,  and  abounds  with  game.  All  the  way  to  Arnheim 
the  eye  was  gladdened  by  some  of  the  most  delightful  objects 
descriptive  of  the  amenity  of  nature.  In  this  country  I  generally 
travelled  in  post-chaises,  or  as  it  is  called,  extra-post ;  but  perhaps, 
as  the  following  information  respecting  the  route  from  Amster- 
dam to  Cologne  may  be  serviceable  to  those  who  travel  by  the 
diligence  or  post-waggon,  I  shall  insert  it : 

From  Amsterdam  to  Utrecht  by  water         -        -  eight  hours, 
to  Arnheim  by  the  diligence,  which 

sets  of  every  day  from  Utrecht  one  long  day. 
to  Wesel  ditto  every  Monday  and 

Thursday        -  one  very  long  day- 

to  Dusseldorf      -  one  day. 

to  Cologne  -        -        -  one  day. 

We  were  serenaded  all  the  way  by  nightingales,  which  are 
very  numerous  in  every  part  of  this  province.  Arnheim  or  Arn- 
hem,  is  a  very  large  and  elegant  city,  partly  watered  by  a  branch 
of  the  Naas,  over  whie'h  are  several  drawbridges,  from  which  there 
are  many  agreeable  views.  The  houses  are  in  general  well  built, 
and,  what  is  remarkable  for  a  Dutch  town,  very  few  of  them  out 
of  the  perpendicular.  The  entrances,  called  St.  Jan's  Poort  and  Sa- 
bel's  Poort,  are  picturesque.  St.  John's  church  is  a  vast  edifice  of 
brick,  with  two  spires,  and  a  fine  set  of  carillons ;  but  with  excep- 
tion to  its  magnitude,  there  is  little  in  or  about  it  worthy  of  obser- 
vation ;  the  same  may  be  said  of  the  church  of  St.  Nicholas.  The 
church  near  Walburges  Plain,  the  name  of  which  I  have  forgotten, 
is  a  prodigious  massy  pile;  and  beheld  from  the  surrounding 
scenery  has  a  very  noble  effect.  The  market-place  is  capacious, 
and  abundantly  supplied  with  every  species  of  provision,  which 
are  here  much  cheaper  than  in  the  other  parts  of  Holland.  The 
streets  of  this  city  are  enlivened  by  several  handsome  equipages, 
and  throughout  the  place  there  is  a  considerable  appearance  of 
refinement  and  opulence.  Here  the  Dutch  language  begins  to  lose 
itself  in  the  German,  a  circumstance  made  manifest  by  a  friend  of 
mine,  a  native  of  Germany,  who  accompanied  me  on  my  return 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  215 

from  that  country  to  Holland,  finding  considerable  difficulty  in  un- 
derstanding the  lower  people  in  Arnheim.  The  inns  here  are  in 
general  very  good.  This  city  gave  birth  to  the  celebrated  David 
Beck  in  1 621,  a  disciple  of  Vandyke,  from  whom  he  imbibed  that 
exquisite  style  of  colouring  and  penciling  which  belong  to  his 
school.  King  Charles  the  First  was  so  astonished  at  the  freedom 
of  his  hand,  he  one  day  said,  "  I  do  believe,  Beck,  you  could  paint 
if  you  were  riding  post."  The  person  of  this  artist  was  remarka- 
bly handsome,  and  his  manners  perfectly  well  bred :  these  quali- 
ties, accompanied  with  such  talentsin  his  art,  recommended  him 
to  the  attention  of  queen  Christina  of  Sweden,  who  appointed  him 
her  portrait-painter  and  chamberlain ;  and  under  her  patronage  he 
painted  most  of  the  illustrious  persons  of  Europe.  The  following 
singular  event  occurred  to  this  artist  in  his  tour  through  Germany. 
At  an  inn  where  he  stopped  for  the  night,  he  was  suddenly  taken 
violently  ill,  to  appearance  expired,  and  was  accordingly  laid  out 
for  a  corpse.  His  valets,  who  were  much  attached  to  him,  sat  by 
his  bed-side,  deeply  lamenting  the  loss  of  so  good  a  master;  and, 
like  the  Irish  upon  such  occasion,  sought  consolation  in  the  bottle, 
which  was  put  about  very  briskly;  at  length  one  of  them,  who  was 
greatly  intoxicated,  said  to  his  companions,  "  Come,  my  friends, 
our  poor  dear  master  used  to  be  very  fond  of  his  glass  when  alive, 
suppose,  out  of  gratitude,  we  give  him  a  bumper  now  he  is  dead." 
To  this  jovial  recommendation  the  rest  of  the  servants  consented. 
They  accordingly  raised  his  head,  and  the  mover  of  the  measure 
poured  some  of  the  wine  into  his  mouth ;  this  produced  the  imme- 
diate effect  of  forcing  him  to  open  his  eyes,  which,  from  the  ex- 
cessive drunkenness  of  the  fellow,  did  not  surprise  him,  and  he 
continued  pouring  the  wine  down  his  master's  throat  until  the 
glass  was  emptied,  which  at  last  completely  recovered  him;  and 
by  this  accidental  circumstance  he  was  saved  from  a  premature  in- 
terment. However,  he  escaped  death  in  this  violent  shape  only  to 
meet  it  in  another,  for  it  was  generally  suspected  that  his  final  fate 
was  effected  by  poison  administered  by  some  miscreant,  hired  for 
the  purpose  by  queen  Christina,  at  the  Hague,  in  revenge  for  his 
having  quitted  her  to  visit  his  friends  in  Holland,  with  a  deter- 


216  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

initiation  never  more  to  visit  Sweden.  The  works  of  this  master 
are  justly  held  in  very  high  estimation,  and  he  became  the  favour- 
ed object  of  the  most  unbounded  marks  of  distinction  and  honour. 

With  an  exception  to  large  churches,  and  handsome  streets, 
and  some  pretty  and  well  dressed  women,  there  is  little,  at  least 
as  far  as  I  could  learn,  to  detain  a  traveller  in  this  city,  so  I  set  off 
for  Wesel  with  all  due  expedition,  impatient  to  move  upon  the 
bosom  of  the  Rhine. 

On  the  road,  which  was  agreeably  diversified,  we  met  several 
milk-maids,  bearing  their  milk  home  in  large  copper  vessels, 
shining  very  bright,  slung  to  their  backs,  which  had  a  picturesque 
effect.  About  four  miles  from  Arnheim,  just  after  passing  a  bridge 
of  boats  at  Sevenhal,  I  entered  a  small  town,  at  the  end  of  which 
is  the  first  barrier  of  the  new  territories  of  prince  Joachim,  grand 
admiral  of  France  and  duke  of  Berg,  a  piece  of  history  which  I 
first  learned  from  a  new  ordinance  or  law,  in  German  and  French, 
to  regulate  the  safe  delivery  of  letters,  pasted  upon  one  of  the  gates 
of  the  town.  In  this  dutchy  most  of  the  peasants  are  catholics, 
"who  make  a  public  avowal  of  their  faith  by  painting  a  large  whi^e 
cross  on  the  outside  of  their  houses.  On  the  left,  within  a  short 
distance  of  the  frontier  of  prince  Joachim's  territory,  upon  the 
summit  of  a  mountain,  are  two  large  religious  houses  for  monks 
and  nuns.  A  little  indisposition,  in  addition  to  the  heat  of  a  very- 
sultry  day,  prevented  me  from  quitting  the  carriage  to  visit  the 
holy  fraternity  and  sisterhood,  of  whom,  I  was  informed,  very  few 
members  remain,  and  those  far  advanced  in  life.  The  revolution  of 
France,  and  the  progress  of  the  French  arms,  have  at  least  the 
merit  of  having  prevented  the  immolation  of  many  a  lovely  young 
creature,  possessed  of  every  personal  and  mental  charm  to  gladden 
this  chequered  life  of  ours. 

Thrice  blessed  they  that  master  so  their  blood 
To  undergo  such  maiden  pilgrimage: 
But  earthliei  ..appy  is  the  rose  distill'dj 
Than  that,  which-  withering  on  the  virgin  thorn, 
Grows,  lives,  and  dies,  in  single  blessedness. 

Midsummer  Night's  Dream,  Act  I.  Scene  1. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  217 

The  approach  to  these  convents  from  the  town  is  by  a  pleasant 
avenue  of  trees,  their  situation  must  be  very  agreeable,  from  the 
extensive  prospect  which  they  command.  On  our  right  the  spires 
of  the  city  of  Cleves,  on  the  French  side  of  the  Rhine  appeared, 
and  produced  a  very  pleasing  effect.  Upon  turning  the  base  of  the 
hill  on  which  the  monastic  mansions  stand,  we  entered  upon  a  deep 
sandy  road,  and  a  very  flat  and  uninteresting  country,  in  which 
very  few  objects  occurred  to  afford  any  gratification  to  the  eye. 
The  Rhine  occasionally  appeared,  but  not  to  much  advantage : 
the  majesty  of  its  breadth  is  obscured  by  the  great  number  of 
islands  upon  it  in  this  stage  of  its  descent.  Flink,  whom  I  have 
mentioned  in  describing  the  Stadthouse  at  Amsterdam,  was  bora 
at  Cleves  in  1616.  This  able  artist  was  destined,  like  our  celebrated 
Garrick,  for  the  bureau  of  a  compting-house ;  but  his  genius  and 
passion  for  painting  overcame  all  the  impediments  placed  in  their 
way  by  paternal  authority,  and  the  persuasions  of  friends,  and  he 
renounced  the  prospect  of  accumulating  immense  riches  by  com- 
merce, for  the  glory  of  the  art.  He  made  great  progress  under 
Rembrandt,  whose  style  he  imitated  to  perfection;  he  soon  rose  to 
distinguished  reputation,  and  was  employed  to  paint  the  portraits 
of  princes  and  illustrious  personages  of  the  times  in  which  he 
flourished;  he  died  very  young  and  much  regretted. 

After  a  tedious  and  unpleasant  journey  I  reached  Wesel,  a 
large,  gloomy,  and  very  strongly  fortified  town:  as  the  gates  had 
been  closed  at  eight  o'clock,  and  it  struck  eleven  as  I  passed  the 
last  draw-bridge,  it  was  with  some  difficulty  and  delay  that  I  was 
admitted.  Only  persons  travelling  extra-post  and  in  the  post- 
waggon,  or  diligence,  are  admitted  after  the  gates  are  once  shut. 
This  place  presents  a  disgusting  contrast  to  the  neatness  and  clean- 
liness of  the  towns  in  Holland.  The  moment  I  passed  the  gates,  a 
most  offensive  mauvais  odeur  assailed  my  nose  on  all  sides.  There 
is  only  one  tolerable  inn  in  the  whole  place,  and  that  is  generally 
very  crowded.  If  the  traveller  cannot  be  accommodated  there,  he 
will  be  marched,  as  I  was,  to  a  pig-stye,  or  a  house  of  ease  to  the 
former,  where  he  may  meditate  at  leisure  on  the  sapient  poetical 
advice  of  Shakspeare : 

*  2E 


218  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

Cease  to  lament  for  what  thou  canst  not  help. 

Here,  according  to  a  regulation  which  prevails  in  every  part 
of  Germany,  I  was  annoyed  by  being  presented  with  a  printed 
paper,  containing  several  columns,  titled  as  follow : 


Nahme 

Your  name. 

Karaker 

Profession. 

Wohnort 

Residence. 

Kommend'oon 

Where  came  you  from. 

Gthendnach 

Where  going  to. 

Auffenthalt 

How  long  you  intend  to  stay. 

All  of  which  I  duly  answered  in  writing,  except  the  last  interro- 
gatory but  one,  namely,  u  where  are  you  going?"  under  which 
I  peevishly  wrote  "  to  sleep,"  consolidated  into  one  word,  in  large 
close  letters.  To  an  Englishman  unaccustomed  to  such  examina- 
tions, which  after  all  are  little  more  than  formal,  although  every 
innkeeper  by  law  is  obliged  to  make  such  report  of  every  traveller 
on  his  arrival,  they  are  very  liable  to  excite  an  inverted  blessing 
upon  the  heads  of  those  who  trouble  him  in  this  manner. 

Wesel  is  an  abominable  dunghill,'  very  strongly  fortified.  In 
the  course  of  my  perambulations  through  the  town,  the  objects 
which  I  met  with  were  infinitely  more  offensive  to  the  sense  of 
smelling  than  gratifying  to  that  of  seeing,  and  doubly  disgusting 
from  the  contrast  of  exquisite  cleanliness  which  the  country  I  had 
just  quitted,  exhibited.  This  part  of  Westphalia  is  very  fiat,  barren, 
sandy,  and  dreary,  presenting  little  more  than  thin  patches  of 
•buckwheat.  The  roads  are  very  heavy,  and  with  an  exception  to  an 
oratory  in  a  little  grove,  and  three  wooden  effigies  as  large  as  life, 
representing  the  crucifixion,  not  one  enlivening  or  interesting  ob- 
ject presented  itself.  I  mention  the  following  travelling  anecdote 
by  way  of  caution  to  my  reader,  should  he  select  this  route.  At 
Dinslaken,  one  of  the  post  towns  between  Wesel  and  Dusseldorf, 
the  post-master  told  me  that  two  horses  would  not  be  sufficient  in 
such  roads  for  the  carriage,  and  declared  his  determination,  that 
unless  I  took  three,  I  should  have  none.  If  I  had  submitted  to 
this  imposition  here,  I  must  have  done  so  throughout;  I  was 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  219 

therefore  obliged  to  compound  with  this  extortioner  in  office,  by- 
paying  half  of  a  third  horse,  which  sum  went  into  his  pocket,  and 
pursued  my  route  with  a  couple,  who  conducted  me  in  very  good 
style  to  the  next  post  town.  In  every  part  of  Germany  the  post- 
masters are  appointed  by,  and  are  under  the  control  of  the  reign- 
ing prince  of  Turn  and  Saxis,  the  hereditary  director  and  post- 
master general  of  the  roads  in  that  part  of  Europe.  My  driver 
stopped  to  give  his  horses  some  wretched  hard  bread,  used  by  the 
peasantry  in  Westphalia,  composed  of  straw  and  oats,  called  bon- 
fiournikel  from  the  following  circumstance.  Many  years  since  a 
Frenchman,  travelling  in  this  country,  called  for  bread  for  him- 
self, and  upon  this  sort  being  presented,  he  exclaimed,  C'est  don 
fiour  Nikel  (the  name  of  his  horse);  upon  which  the  old  woman 
who  had  brought  it  in  ran  about  the  village  in  a  great  pet  relating 
the  story. 

As  I  was  proceeding  by  moon-light,  a  German  gentleman  who 
had  travelled  some  way  with  me  was  observing,  that  throughout 
Westphalia  a  robbery  upon  the  highway  had  not  been  known  for 
many  years,  and  that  a  traveller  was  as  safe  in  the  night  as  in  the 
day;  and  at  the  moment  when  he  had  just  finished  an  animated 
eulogium  upon  the  invincible  honesty  of  the  people,  I  happened 
to  observe  the  shadow  of  a  man  behind  the  cabriolet,  the  head 
of  which  was  raised,  apparently  very  busy  in  endeavouring  to  cut  off 
our  trunks,  which,  upon  our  jumping  out,  proved  to  be.  the  case  j 
the  fellow  was  much  alarmed  by  our  appearance,  fell  upon  his 
knees,  and  declared  that  he  belonged  to  Dusseldorf,  and  poverty 
had  prompted  him  to  quit  that  city,  and  try  his  fortune  on  the 
highway.  Nothing  could  exceed  the  indignation  of  the  German 
the  moment  he  knew  that  our  prisoner  was  a  Westphalian ;  had 
he  fortunately  announced  himself  as  a  native  of  any  other  country, 
I  believe  he  would  have  rather  relieved  the  fellow's  distress,  than 
pierced  his  ears,  and  perhaps  his  heart,  with  the  bitter  reproaches 
he  heaped  upon  him :  however,  as  the  affair  furnished  me  with  a 
hearty  laugh,  I  prevailed  upon  my  companion  to  forgive  the  poor 
wretch,  whose  face  and  clothes  indicated  extreme  wretchedness, 
and  permit  him  to  depart  in  peace ;  and  we  proceeded  without 


220  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

further  interruption  to  within  a  short  stage  of  Dusseldorf,  where 
we  slept. 

The  appearance  of  Dusseldorf  at  a  little  distance  is  very  hand- 
some, particularly  from  the  Grand  ducal  road,  as  it  was  styled. 
Upon  my  driving  up  to  the  principal  inn,  the  maitre  d'hotel  with 
great  pomp  came  out,  and  informed  me  in  bad  French  that  his 
house  was  then  nearly  full;  that  the  grand  Dutchess  from  Paris  was 
expected  every  day;  that  his  bed-rooms  would  be  wanted  for  those 
belonging  to  the  court  who  could  not  be  accommodated  at  the  pa- 
lace, and,  finally,  that  he  could  not  receive  me.  As  I  immediately 
guessed  his  object,  I  told  him  that  I  intended  to  stay  some  days  at 
Dusseldorf.  "  Oh,  very  well,"  said  he,  archly  adding,  "  you  are  an 
Englishman  I  perceive."  "  No,  sir,  an  American."  "  Oh,"  replied, 
he,  "  never  mind,  it  is  the  same  thing:  walk  in,  sir,  and  we  will 
see  what  we  can  do  for  you."  This  inn,  the  only  eminent  one  in 
town,  is  spacious  and  handsome,  and  the  table  d'hote  excellently 
supplied  with  a  great  variety  of  dishes,  both  at  dinner  and  supper, 
perfectly  well  dressed.  During  my  stay  I  was  known  by  no  other 
name  than  that  of  Monsieur  Anglois,  an  appellation  not  very  gra- 
tifying to  me,  upon  reflecting  that  I  was  a  sojourner  in  the  terri- 
tory of  a  brother-in-law  of  Napoleon,  who,  knowing  that  he  is  no 
favourite  with  the  English,  dislikes  England  and  every  thing  that 
can  remind  him  of  it,,  to  such  a  degree,  that  an  English  gentleman 
and  lady,  whom  I  knew,  who  had  been  detained  prisoners  of  w*r 
in  France,  but  were  afterwards  liberated,  upon  their  route  from 
Verdun  to  Holland  to  embark  for  their  country,  were  one  day 
overtaken  by  a  gen-d'arme  dispatched  express  from  the  last  post 
town,  to  order  them  to  turn  out  of  the  high  road  on  which  they 
were  travelling,  and  to  take  another  route  which  he  pointed  out, 
by  which  they  were  compelled  to  make  a  deviation  of  seventy 
miles.  In  consequence  of  the  French  Emperor  being  expected  to 
pass  that  road  in  the  course  of  the  day,  this  messenger  had  been 
despatched  to  overtake  and  order  them  out  of  the  way  as  fast  as 
possible. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.      221 


CHAPTER  XX. 

DUSSELDORF  DESCRIBED ITS  INHABITANTS THE  GRAND  DU- 
CAL COURT ANECDOTE  OF  MURAT A  DOUBLE  ENTENDRE 

THE  FLYING  BRIDGE COLOGNE A  CONTRABAND  PEEP 

THE  CATHEDRAL A  COLLECTION  OF  GODS A  BON  MOT 

PRIESTLY  MUMMERY ANECDOTE  OF  AN  ARCHBISHOP  OF 

COLOGNE ANECDOTE      OF      REUBENS     AND     OTHER     DISTIN- 
GUISHED PERSONS PRESENT  STATE  OF  COLOGNE. 

DUSSELDORF,  so  called  from  the  little  river  Dussel  that 
waters  its  southern  side,  and  Dhorpf  which  means  village,  is  now 
the  capital  of  the  imperial  dutchy  of  Berg,  under  the  new  dynasty 
of  the  Bonaparte  family :  it  formerly  belonged  to  the  German 
empire,  and  afterwards  to  the  elector  Palatine,  who  at  one  period 
made  it  his  residence;  this  city  owed  the  prosperity  which  it 
long  enjoyed,  to  the  sagacity  and  liberality  of  the  elector  Joseph 
William,  who  enlarged  it  in  1709,  by  nobly  offering,  its  freedom, 
and  an  exemption  from  all  taxes  for  thirty  years,  to  every  one 
who  would  build  a  house  within  its  walls,  and  took  every  judicious 
advantage  of  its  local  adaptation  to  trade,  and  established  univer- 
sal toleration  in  religion ;  the  benefit  of  measures  so  worthy  of 
the  Christian  and  the  ruler  was  speedily  felt,  and  Dusseldorf, 
from  a  petty  village,  soon  became  a  nourishing  city,  and  contain- 
ed a  population  of  18,000  inhabitants. 

Few  towns  have  suffered  more  from  the  calamities  of  war  than 
this:  its  streets,  squares,  and  houses,  denote  its  former  conse- 
quence; it  now  resembles  a  mausolem  half  in  ruins.  Early  in  the 
year  1795,  the  army  of  the  Sambre  and  the  Meuse  suddenly  cros- 
sed the  Rhine,  and  summoned  the  city  to  surrender,  which  it  re- 
fused to  do;  in  consequence  of  which  the  French  bombarded  it,  and 
set  fire  to  one  of  its  most  beautiful  churches,  which  was  burnt  to 
the  ground;  and  the  city  palace,  which  contained  many  noble  apart- 


222  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

tnents,  very  nearly  experienced  the  same  fate;  naked  walls  black- 
ened with  smoke,  are  all  that  remain  of  this  splendid  pile,  except 
that  part  of  it  which  contained  the  celebrated  gallery  of  paintings, 
which  were  removed  to  Munich  under  a  Prussian  escort.  The 
French  at  length  took  the  city  by  assault,  the  Austrians  who 
were  garrisoned  within  it  having  previously  retired.  I  was  sur- 
prised to  find  that  the  French  had  spared  the  statue  erected  as  a 
mark  of  public  gratitude,  in  the  centre  of  the  court  of  the  gallery, 
to  the  honour  of  the  elector  John  William,  who  was  its  founder.  He 
commenced  it  in  the  year  1710;  but  dying  in  1716,  the  comple- 
tion of  this  princely  and  public-spirited  design  was  totally  neglect- 
ed by  his  successor  Charles  Phillip,  who  employed  part  of  his 
treasure,  and  the  whole  of  his  taste,  in  improving  the  city  of 
Manheim.  Charles  Theodore,  his  successor,  finished  this  institu- 
tion, established  an  academy  of  drawing  and  painting  in  Dussel- 
dorf,  and  also  erected  a  public  gallery  of  paintings  at  Manheim, 
which  were  open  to  every  one,  and  every  artist  had  permission 
to  study  and  copy  them. 

The  ruins  of  the  palace  have  a  melancholy  appearance  from 
the  water,  on  which  I  made  a  sketch  of  the  city,  when  I  saw  for 
the  first  time  one  of  the  Rhenish  flying-bridges,  the  description 
of  which  I  shall  reserve  for  a  few  pages  following,  as  I  did  not  go 
on  board  of  it.  That  famous  gallery,  which  attracted  men  of  taste 
from  distant  parts  of  Europe,  occupied  that  part  of  the  palace 
which  stood  close  to  the  junction  of  the  Rhine  and  the  Dussel, 
and  was  divided  into  five  very  large  and  spacious  apartments,  one 
of  which  was  wholly  devoted  to  one  picture  of  Gerard  Douw, 
esteemed  inestimable,  and  one  of  the  finest  he  ever  painted ;  the 
subject  of  it  is  uncommonly  complicated,  yet  every  figure  in  it  is 
so  exquisitly  finished,  that  it  will  bear  the  closest  inspection.  Des- 
criptions of  paintings  are  seldom  very  interesting;  but  the  subject 
of  this  renowned  picture  deserves  to  be  recorded.  It  represented 
a  quack-doctor  at  a  fair,  upon  his  stage  covered  with  a  Turkey 
carpet,  set  out  with  vials  and  gallipots,  a  shaving  bason,  an  um- 
brella, and  a  monkey;  the  doctor,  in  the  most  whimsical  dress,  is 
haranguing  with  uncommon  humour  and  cunning  in  his  counte- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  223 

nance,  the  motley  crowd  below;  amongst  whom,  a  gardener 
wheeling  a  barrow  filled  with  vegetables,  a  countryman  with  a 
hare  hanging  over  his  shoulders,  a  woman  with  a  child  at  the 
breast,  baking  little  cakes  for  the  fair ;  another  woman  listening 
with  ardent  credulity,  whilst  a  sharper  is  picking  her  pocket,  are 
penciled  in  a  wonderful  manner.  Douw  has  represented  himself 
looking  out  of  the  window  of  a  public  house,  and  drawing  the 
several  objects.  The  second  chamber  contained  the  productions 
of  the  Italian  school ;  a  third  those  of  the  Flemish :  a  fourth  was 
dedicated  to  Vanderwerff ;  and  the.fifth  to  Rubens. 

The  only  part  of  the  city  which  presented  any  appearance  of 
animation  was  the  market-place,  which  abounded  with  fine  vege- 
tables, and  exquisite  fruit.  The  market-women,  and  the  female 
peasants,  wear  a  large  handkerchief  depending  from  the  top  of  the 
head,  which  has  a  picturesque  effect.  Fruit  is  so  abundant  that  for 
the  value  of  3d.  I  purchased  a  pound  and  a  half  of  the  most  luscious 
grapes.  In  this  square,  part  of  the  scaffolding  used  for  illuminat- 
ing th£  hotel  de  ville,  on  the  grand  duke  making  his  first  entry 
into  the  city,  remained.  About  a  mile  from  the  town  is  a  country 
palace  of  the  prince,  separated  from  a  garden,  in  front  of  it,  by  the 
great  road  to  Cologne.  The  palace  is  large,  and  very  elegantly 
furnished;  the  gardens  are  spacious,  well  kept,  and  open  to  well- 
dressed  persons.  The  view  of  the  city  from  these  walks  is  very- 
beautiful .  The  ramparts,  which  are  levelling  as  fast  as  the  pick- 
axe and  spade  can  lay  them  low,  in  many  places  present  a  very 
agreeable  walk. 

All  religions  are  tolerated,  but  that  most  followed  is  Roman  Ca- 
tholic, for  the  celebration  of  which  there  are  three  large  churches ; 
before  one  of  them,  raised  and  railed  off,  is  a  group  as  large  as 
life,  in  wood,  painted  white,  representing  our  Saviour  crucified  be- 
tween the  two  thieves,  and  Mary  Magdalen,  kneeling;  several  per- 
sons were  praying  very  devoutly  before  those  images.  The  dead 
are  wisely  buried  out  of  the  city.  In  one  of  the  streets  at  the  ex- 
tremity of  the  town,  is  a  prodigious  pile  of  buildings  for  barracks. 
The  soldiers  of  the  grand  duke,  principally  Germans,  and  a  few 
French,  had  a  very  military  appearance.  The  manufactures  are  at 


224  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

a  pause;  the  population  is  reduced  to  about  eight  thousand  per- 
sons, the  greater  portion  of  whom  are  in  very  abject  circumstances. 
How  different  must  this  place  be  to  its  former  period  of  prospe- 
rity, before  the  last  war,  when  a  gay  old  Prussian  officer  who  re- 
sided there,  told  me,  that  it  was  enlivened  with  clubs,  cassinos,  and 
balls,  when  every  family  of  common  respectability  could  regale 
its  friends  with  the  choicest  Johannis-Berg  Hockein-Rheideshein 
wine.  The  princes  of  Germany  differ  very  much  from  those  of  our 
own  country,  in  the  plain  and  unostentatious  manner  in  which  they 
move  about.  One  morning,  when  I  was  crossing  the  court  of  my 
inn  to  go  to  breakfast,  I  saw  a  little  boy  fencing  with  a  stick  with 
one  of  the  ostlers :  as  I  was  pleased  with  his  appearance,  I  asked 
him  if  he  was  the  son  of  the  maitre  d'hotel,  to  which  he  replied, 
"  No  sir,  I  am  the  hereditary  prince  Von  Salm."  The  prince  and 
princess,  his  father  and  aunt,  were  at  the  same  hotel,  having  come 
to  Dusseldorf  to  pay  their  respects  to  Prince  Murat.  The  grand 
ducal  court  was,  as  I  was  informed,  kept  up  with  considerable 
splendor,  in  the  circle  of  which  the  grand  dutchess,  one  ^f  the 
sisters  of  Napoleon,  had  not  yet  made  her  appearance.  It  was 
generally  believed,  notwithstanding  the  use  my  worthy  host  made 
of  her  approaching  entry,  that  no  great  attachment  existed  be- 
tween the  grand  ducal  pair ;  and  that  the  gaiety  of  the  imperial 
court  of  Paris  possessed  more  prevailing  attractions  to  the  grand 
Dutchess  than  her  own.  Murat,  grand  Duke  of  Berg,  is  an  in- 
stance of  the  astonishing  results  of  great  ability  and  good  fortune. 
His  origin  wras  so  very  obscure,  that  very  little  of  it  is  known. 
The  following  anecdote  will,  however,  throw  some  light  upon  the 
extreme  humility  of  his  early  condition  in  life.  After  his  elevation 
to  the  rank  of  a  prince  of  the  French  empire,  he  halted,  in  the 
close  of  the  last  war,  at  a  small  town  in  Germany,  where  he  stay- 
ed for  two  or  three  days;  and  on  finding  the  bread  prepared  for 
his  table  of  an  inferior  kind,  he  despatched  one  of  his  suite  to  or- 
der the  best  baker  in  the  town  to  attend  him,  to  receive  from  him 
liis  directions  respecting  this  precious  article  of  life.  A  baker  who 
had  been  long  established  in  the  place  was  selected  for  this  pur- 
pose; and  upon  the  aide-de-camp  ordering  him  to  wait  upon  the 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  225 

prince  immediately,  he  observed,  to  the  no  little  surprise  of  the 
officer — "  It  is  useless  my  going,  the  prince  will  never  employ 
me."  Upon  being  pressed  to  state  his  reasons,  he  declined  as- 
signing any;  but  as  the  order  of  the  messenger  was  peremptory, 
he  followed  him,  and  was  immediately  admitted  to  Murat,  with 
whom  he  stayed  about  ten  minutes,  and  then  retired.  As  he  quit- 
ted the  house  in  which  the  prince  lodged,  he  observed  to  the  aide- 
de-camp,  "  I  told  you  the  prince  would  not  employ  me — "  he  has 
dismissed  me  with  this,"  displaying  a  purse  of  ducats.  Upon  be- 
ing again  pressed  to  explain  the  reason  of  this  singular  conduct, 
he  replied,  "  The  Prince  Murat,  when  a  boy,  was  apprenticed  to 
a  biscuit  baker  in  the  south  of  France,  at  the  time  I  was  a  jour- 
neyman to  him,  and  I  have  often  threshed  him  for  being  idle;  the 
moment  he  saw  me  just  now,  he  instantly  remembered  me,  and 
without  entering  into  the  subject  of  our  ancient  acquaintance,  or 
of  that  which  led  me  to  his  presence,  he  hastily  took  his  purse  of 
ducats  from  the  drawer  of  the  table  where  he  sat,  gave  it  to  me, 
and  ordered  me  to  retire." 

The  heroic  courage  which  Murat  displayed  in  the  campaign 
of  1797,  when  in  conjunction  with  Duphoz,  at  the  head  of  their 
respective  divisions,  they  plunged  into  the  deep  and  impetuous 
stream  of  Tagliamento,  gained  the  opposite  banks,  and  drove  the 
Austrians,  headed  by  their  able  and  amiable  general,  the  Arch- 
duke Charles,  as  far  as  the  confines  of  Carnithia  and  Carniola;  and 
the  numerous  battles  in  which  he  distinguished  himself  in  Egypt, 
and  afterwards  at  Montebello  and  Marengo,  where  at  the  head  of 
his  cavalry,  he  successfully  supported  the  brilliant  and  eventful 
movement  of  Dessaix,  will  rank  him  in  the  page  of  history  amongst 
the  most  illustrious  of  those  consummate  generals,  which  the  fer- 
mentation of  the  French  revolution  has  elevated  from  the  depths 
of  obscurity.  In  Egypt  he  was  high  in  the  confidence  of  Napoleon, 
whom  he  accompanied  with  Lasnes,  Andreossi,  Bessieres,  and 
several  members  of  the  Egyptian  Institute,  when  Bonaparte  ef- 
fected his  memorable  passage  from  his  army  to  Frejus,  in  August 
1799.  Upon  the  death  of  General  Le  Clerc,  who  was  united  to  a 
sister  of  Napoleon,  Murat  paid  his  addresses  to,  and  espoused  his 


226  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

widow,*  with  the  entire  approbation  of  his  great  comrade  in  arms, 
by  whom  he  was,  upon  his  elevation  to  the  imperial  throne,  crea- 
ted a  prince  of  the  empire,  and  at  length  raised  to  the  rank  of  a 
sovereign.  He  is  reserved  and  unostentatious,  and  is  seldom  visi- 
ble to  his  people.  Some  of  the  Westphalians,  who  are  attached  to 
the  ancient  order  of  things,  have  a  joke  amongst  themselves  at  the 
expense  of  their  new  prince,  whose  christian  name  being  Joachim, 
they  pronounce  it  with  an  accompanying  laugh,  Jachim,  which 
means  "  drive  him  away ;"  and  there  is  very  little  difference  in  the 
pronunciation. 

As  Dusseldorf  had  infinitely  less  charms  for  me  than  it  had  for 
the  grand  Dutchess,  I  was  as  well  pleased  to  quit  it,  as  she  was 
disinclined  to  enter  it;  so  mounting  my  cabriolet,  for  which  I  was 
obliged  to  make  the  best  bargain  I  could  with  the  post-master,  I 
set  off  for  Cologne,  the  road  to  which  is  far  more  pleasant  than 
any  other  part  of  the  dutchy  which  I  saw,  though  the  whole  is  very 
flat.  About  six  miles  from  Dusseldorf,  I  passed  a  beautiful  country 
palace  of  the  grand  Duke,  called  Benrad,  composed  of  a  range  of 
semicircular  buildings  detached  from  each  other,  standing  upon 
the  summit  of  a  gentle  slope,  at  the  bottom  of  which  is  a  large  cir- 
cular piece  of  watei\  The  grand  Duke  makes  this  place  his  prin- 
cipal residence,  and  very  seldom  goes  to  that  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  the  city  more  than  twice  in  the  week,  to  give  audience 
and  transact  affairs  of  state,  which,  as  the  government  is  entirely 
despotic,  are  managed  with  ease  and  despatch.  The  appearance  of 
the  body-guard  at  the  entrance  announced  that  the  prince  was  at 
this  place  when  I  passed  it:  the  grounds  and  gardens,  seen  from 
the  road,  appear  to  be  tastefully  arranged.  Although  the  road  is 
sandy,  yet  it  is  infinitely  preferable,  I  was  informed,  to  crossing 
the  ferry  at  Dusseldorf,  and  proceeding  by  that  route  to  Cologne. 
After  passing  Muhlheim,  a  very  neat  town,  the  suburbs  of  which 
is  adorned  with  some  handsome  country  houses,  I  entered,  about  a 
mile  further,  the  village  of  Deutz,  and  beheld  the  venerable  city 

*  This  is  a  mistake  of  the  author.  Prince  Murat  married  Napoleon's 
youngest  sister,  who  had  not  been  previously  married.  Le  Clerc's  widow 
is  married  to  Prince  Borghese.  Amer.  Editor. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  227 

uf  Cologne,  separated  by  the  Rhine,  immediately  before  me.  At 
one  end  of  the  village  is  a  large  convent  of  Carmelites,  and  on  the 
day  of  my  arrival  a  religious  fete  was  celebrating,  at  which  nearly 
all  the  population  of  the  place  and  neighbourhood  assisted,  and 
the  streets  were  enlivened  with  little  booths,  in  which  crosses  and 
ornaments  of  gold  lace  and  beads  were  tastefully  exposed  to  the  eye. 

The  bell  of  the  flying  bridge  summoned  me  on  board,  and  in 
about  five  minutes  I  found  myself  in  the  French  empire,  attended 
by  French  custom-house  officers  in  green  costume,  who  conduc- 
ted me  to  the  Douane.  This  ferry  cannot  fail  to  impress  the  mind 
and  excite  the  curiosity  of  a  stranger :  it  is  formed  of  a  broad  plat- 
form resting  upon  two  large  barges,  like  our  coal  lighters;  from 
this  platform  a  vast  wooden  frame  in  the  shape  of  a  gallows  is 
erected,  which  is  fastened  to  the  former  by  strong  chains  of  iron, 
whilst  from  the  centre  cross  piece,  a  chain  of  the  same  metal  of 
great  length,  is  fixed  to  the  top  of  an  upright  pole  standing  in  each 
of  a  long  line  of  boats,  the  remotest  of  which  is  at  anchor;  by 
this  machinery  a  powerful  pressure  is  obtained;  to  each  of  the 
barges  a  rudder  is  affixed,  which,  upon  being  placed  in  an  oblique 
direction,  produces  a  lateral  motion  upon  the  stream,  which  acts 
as  a  force  from  above ;  so  that  by  changing  the  rudder  to  the 
right  or  left,  the  bridge  is  forced  on  one  side  or  the  other  of  the 
river,  with  equal  certainty  and  celerity.  Fifteen  hundred  persons 
can  with  perfect  ease  be  transported  at  the  same  time  upon  these 
bridges,  and  carriages  and  horses  are  driven  upon  them  without 
any  stoppage,  from  the  banks,  to  which  they  are  lashed,  until  put 
in  motion.  The  Germans  call  this  machine  the  Fliegende  Schiffs- 
Brucke,  or  the  volant  bridge  of  boats;  the  Dutch  geer  burg,  or 
the  bridge  in  shackles,  in  allusion  to  its  chains;  and  the  French  le 
pont  volant,  or  the  flying  bridge. 

The  search  made  by  the  custom-house  officers  amongst  my 
fellow-passengers,  most  of  whom  had  only  just  crossed  and  re- 
crossed  the  river,  was  very  rigorous;  the  females  were  marched 
up  to  a  small  house,  where,  as  I  discovered  by  accidentally  opening 
the  door,  and  offending  as  the  elders  did  when  they  took  a  lawless 
peep  at  Susanna,  to  the  no  small  delight  of  those  who  were  loung- 


228  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

ing  without,  and  of  embarrassment  to  those  within,  they  underwent 
a  private  examination  by  two  matrons,  appointed  for  the  purpose. 

At  this  place  I  expected  some  difficulty;  but  upon  my  declaring 
myself  an  American,  and  showing  my  pass,  and  just  opening  my 
trunk,  the  officers,  with  great  politeness,  called  a  porter  to  carry 
my  luggage  into  the  city,  and  pulling  off  their  hats,  recommended 
me  to  La  Cour  Imperiale,  one  of  the  best  hotels,  where  I  arrived 
just  in  time  to  sit  down  to  a  splendid  table  d'hote,  at  which  several 
beautiful  and  well-dressed  ladies,  German  noblemen,  and  French 
officers,  were  present. 

This  city  was  formerly  celebrated  for  the  number  of  its  devotees 
and  prostitutes,  which  the  French  police  has  very  much  reduced. 
The  first  object  I  visited,  was  the  cathedral,  which,  from  the  water 
appears  like  a  stupendous  fragment,  that  had  withstood  the  shock 
of  war,  or  some  convulsion  of  nature,  by  which  the  rest  of  the  pile 
had  been  prostrated ;  but  upon  inquiry,  I  found  that  it  owed  its 
mutilated  appearance  to  no  such  event,  but  to  the  obstacles  which 
have  occurred  for  ages  in  completing  it,  according  to  its  original 
design.  In  the  year  1248,  Conrad,  the  elector  and  bishop  of  Hock- 
steden,  in  the  pride  and  exultation  of  holy  enthusiasm,  resolved  to 
erect  a  temple  to  God,  which  should  have  no  equal  in  size  and 
magnificence  ;  it  was  intended  that  the  two  western  towers  should 
have  been  five  hundred  feet  in  elevation,  and  the  nave  or  body  of 
the  church  in  proportion,  and  every  external  stone  which  the  eye 
could  perceive,  decorated  with  the  most  exquisite  ornament  of 
pure  gothic  architecture.  The  successors  of  the  prince  bishop, 
who  resembled  in  the  splendor  of  his  spirit  the  emperor  who  so 
elegantly  wished  to  leave  the  town  stone,  which  he  had  found  brick, 
continued  the  building  for  two  centuries  and  a  half;  but  owing  to 
their  resources  being  insufficient,  they  weve  obliged  to  leave  it  in 
a  very  imperfect  state,  but  capable  of  being  used  for  religious 
purposes.  There  is  no  building  of  the  kind  to  compare  with  it, 
but  the  Duomo  at  Milan.  One  of  the  western  towers,  which  I 
ascended,  is  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  feet  high,  from  which 
there  is  a  fine  view  of  the  city,  the  Rhine,  and  the  surrounding 
country;  the  other  tower  is  not  above  forty  feet  high.    The  roof 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  229 

of  the  greater  part  of  the  body  of  the  church  is  temporary  and 
low;  but  so  spacious  is  the  area  which  it  covers,  that  one  hun- 
dred massy  pillars,  arranged  inibur  rows,  present  a  light  and  airy 
appearance  upon  it.  My  guide,  who  was  a  good  humoured  intelli- 
gent man,  with  many  significant  shrugs  of  regret,  informed  me, 
that  the  moveable  decorations  of  the  church  and  altar  were  once 
worthy  of  a  stranger's  attention ;  but  that  the  generals  of  the  French 
armies,  during  the  revolution,  had  pillaged  this  holy  sanctuary  of 
its  richest  ornaments;  however,  the  grand  altar  in  the  choir  was 
not  sufficiently  portable  for  their  rapacious  hands,  and  remains  to 
show  the  magnificent  scale  upon  which  every  part  of  the  cathedral 
was  originally  designed.  This  altar  is  formed  of  one  solid  block,  of 
the  finest  sable  marble,  sixteen  feet  long  and  eight  broad,  placed 
upon  the  summit  of  a  flight  of  steps. 

The  treasury,  or  as  it  is  called  the  golden  chamber,  contains 
the  robes  of  the  priests,  which  are  very  magnificent,  arranged  with 
great  care  and  order  in  several  ward-robes;  and  busts  of  saints  and 
holy  utensils  in  gold  and  silver,  many  of  which  were  once  en- 
crusted with  the  most  precious  stones,  but  which  had  been  re- 
moved by  the  French,  and  their  places  supplied  by  paste.  Amongst 
the  still  costly  contents  of  this  chamber,  I  noticed  a  small  tomb  of 
a  priest  in  solid  gold  and  silver,  and  a  skull  of  St.  Peter,  of  the 
same  precious  metal.  In  this  room  were  several  ladies,  who  ap- 
peared to  be  under  the  strongest  influence  of  Roman  Catholic  en- 
thusiasm ;  not  a  robe  or  a  relic  was  exhibited,  which  did  not  draw 
forth  some  fervidly  pious  exclamation. 

I  was  shewn,  as  a  marvelous  curiosity,  the  mausoleum  of  the 
Three  Kings,  behind  the  grand  altar  towards  the  east,  where  the 
bodies  of  these  personages,  and  those  of  the  martyrs,  Gregory  of 
Spoleto,  and  Felix  Nabor,  repose.  The  bones  of  the  three  kings 
are  said  to  have  been  brought  away  by  the  emperor  Frederick 
Rarbarossa,  when  he  sacked  Milan,  and  presented  to  the  arch- 
bishop Bernauld  of  Dassalde,  who  attended  him  in  his  military 
exploits,  and  who  deposited  them  near  Bonn,  from  whence  they 
were  transferred  to  the  spot  where  their  mausoleum  was  after- 
wards erected,  before  the  building  of  the  present  cathedral  in  the 


230  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

year  1170:  the  bones  of  these  personages,  of  course,  performed 
all  sorts  of  prodigies;  the  blind  by  touching  them,  became  astro- 
nomers, and  the  lame,  dancing  masters.  This  tomb,  before  the 
last  war,  was  uncommonly  rich  and  magnificent;  but  the  French, 
who  have  displayed  no  great  respect  for  living  kings,  could  not  be 
expected  to  pay  much  to  three  dead  ones,  and  accordingly  they 
have  stripped  their  shrine  of  most  of  the  jewelry,  and  precious 
ornaments.  The  sacrilege  committed  upon  three  holy  kings,  who 
were  transported  so  far  from  their  native  country,  reminds  me  of 
an  anecdote,  in  which  the  playful  wit  of  Mr.  Hastings,  formerly 
governor-general  of  India,  was  eminently  displayed.  An  antiquary 
having  collected  in  India  a  considerable  number  of  Hindoo  gods, 
had  them  well  packed  up  for  the  purpose  of  being  sent  to  En- 
gland, and  on  the  top  of  the  case  wrote  in  large  characters  "  Gods 
—please  to  keep,  these  uppermost ;  the  governor-general  calling  one 
morning  on  the  collector,  observed  the  package  in  his  library,  and 
remarking  the  superscription,  said,  "  your  direction  is  a  wise  one, 
for  when  you  transport  gods  into  a  foreign  country,  it  is  ten  to 
one  but  that  they  are  overturned" 

Every  street  reminds  the  stranger  of  the  former  prevalence 
of  the  priesthood.  Before  the  war,  the  clergy  in  this  city,  were  di- 
vided into  eleven  chapters,  nineteen  parishes,  nineteen  convents 
for  men,  and  thirty-nine  convents  for  women,  besides  forty-nine 
chapels,  institutions  which  supported  between  two  and  three  thou- 
sand persons  in  useless  voluptuousness  and  sloth. 

As  the  other  churches  have  been  striped  of  their  finery,  and 
were  not  embellished  by  any  striking  work  of  the  statuary,  I 
merely  took  a  cursory  view  of  their  exterior:  the  principal  are  the 
Jesuits'  church,  the  collegiate  church  of  St.  Gerion,  that  of  the 
Maccabees,  and  the  abbey  church  of  St.  Pantaleon :  all  these  and 
a  number  of  other  sacred  buildings  useless  to  name,  abounded  with 
saints  and  shrines  incrusted  with  a  profusion  of  jewellery,  and  all 
the  mummery  and  mockery  of  cunning  and  credulity.  With  res- 
pect to  the  chapel  of  St.  Ursula^  a  whimsical  circumstance  occur- 
red some  years  since :  in  this  depositary,  for  a  great  length  of 
time,  have  reposed  the  bones  of  the  immaculate  St.  Ursula,  and 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  231 

eleven  thousand  virgins  her  companions,  who  came  from  England 
in  a  little  boat  in  the  year  640,  to  convert  the  Huns  who  had  taken 
possession  of  this  city,  who  instead  of  being  moved  by  their  sweet 
eloquence  and  cherub-like  looks,  put  an  end  to  their  argument  by 
putting  them  all  to  death.  Some  doubts  arose  many  years  since 
whether  any  country  could  have  spared  so  many  virgins,  and  a 
surgeon,  somewhat  of  a  wag,  upon  examining  the  consecrated 
bones,  declared  that  most  of  them  were  the  bones  of  full  grown 
female  mastiffs,  for  which  discovery  he  was  expelled  the  city. 
The  convents  and  monasteries  are  converted  into  garrisons  for  the 
French  troops  quartered  in  the  city.  It  is  in  contemplation  to  pull 
down  about  two-thirds  of  the  churches. 

On  account  of  its  numerous  religious  houses  Cologne  was  cal- 
led the  Holy  city.  Bigotry,  beggary,  and  ignorance  disfigured  the 
place  in  spite  of  its  once  flourishing  trade  and  university.  When 
the  French  seized  upon  this  city,  in  1794,  they  soon  removed  the 
rubbish  of  ages ;  three-fourths  of  the  priests  had  the  choice  of  re- 
tiring or  entering  the  army,  and  when  withdrawn,  the  weak  minds 
over  which  they  had  exercised  sovereign  influence  recovered  their 
tone,  and  lived  to  hail  the  hour  of  their  delivery  from  fanatical  bon- 
dage, and  the  sturdy  beggars  were  formed  into  conscripts.  One  of 
the  most  illustrious  of  the  archbishops  of  Cologne  was  Theodoric, 
who  was  much  celebrated  in  his  time  for  his  talents,  erudition  and 
morals.  An  anecdote  is  related  of  him,  that  upon  the  emperor 
Sigismund  one  day  asking  him  how  to  obtain  happiness  hereafter, 
as  the  possession  of  it  seemed  impossible,  Theodoric  replied, 
"  You  must  act  virtuously,  that  is,  you  should  always  pursue  that 
plan  of  conduct  which  you  promise  to  do  whilst  you  are  labouring 
under  a  fit  of  the  gravel,  gout,  or  stone." 

When  the  Devil  was  sick 

The  Devil  a  Monk  would  be ; 
When  the  Devil  was  well 

Tiie  Devil  a  Monk  was  he. 

This  city  is  celebrated  for  having  given  birth  to  Agrippina  the 
mother  of  Nero,  but  it  has  derived  more  lustre  from  the  immortal 
Rubens  having  been  born  here  in  1 640 :  the  house  in  which  he 


232  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

resided  is  still  preserved  and  exhibited  with  great  pride  to  stran- 
gers. This  illustrious  man  was  no  less  a  scholar  than  a  painter, 
and  hence  his  allegorical  works  are  more  purely  classical  than 
those  of  any  other  master:  of  this  the  gallery  of  the  Luxembourg 
and  the  banqueting-room  at  Whitehall  bear  ample  testimony. 
Whilst  he  painted  he  used  to  recite  the  poems  of  Homer  and  Vir- 
gil, which  he  knew  by  heart,  by  which  he  infused  the  divine  spirit 
of  poetry  into  the  productions  of  his  pencils  After  having  studied 
a  few  years  in  Italy,  his  renown  as  an  artist  spread  through  Eu- 
rope, whilst  his  learning,  amenity  of  manners,  elegant  accom- 
plishments, and  amiable  mind,  secured  to  him  the  esteem  and  re- 
gard of  all  whom  he  approached.  He  was  particularly  cherished 
by  the  kings  of  England,  Spain,  and  other  monarch s:  he  was  even 
employed  upon  a  very  delicate  occasion  to  communicate  proposals 
from  the  cabinet  of  Spain  to  that  of  London,  and  Charles  I.  was  so 
delighted  with  his  various  talents,  that  he  conferred  upon  him  the 
honour  of  knighthood.  The  number  of  his  paintings  is  prodigious. 
Sir  Joshua  Reynolds  said  that  the  most  grand,  as  well  as  the  most 
perfect  piece  of  composition  in  the  world,  was  that  of  Rubens's  pic- 
ture of  the  Fall  of  the  Damned,  formerly  in  the  gallery  of  Dussel- 
dorf ;  that  it  combined  such  a  varied,  heterogeneous  and  horrible 
subject,  in  such  a  wonderful  manner,  that  he  scarcely  knew  which 
most  to  admire,  the  invention  or  the  composition  of  the  master. 
The  last  of  Rubens's  paintings  was  the  Crucifixion  of  St.  Peter, 
with  his  head  downward,  which  he  presented  to  St.  Peter's  church 
in  this  city  one  day  after  taking  a  copy  of  the  register  of  his  birth 
from  its  archives:  the  tasteless  and  mercenary  heads  of  the  church 
received  this  invaluable  present  with  little  expressions  of  gratitude, 
and  were  disappointed  that  the  donor  had  not  given  them  money 
in  lieu:  when  Rubens  heard  of  their  dissatisfaction,  he  offered  them 
28,000  crowns  for  the  picture,  which,  merely  in  consequence  of 
the  offer,  they  considered  to  be  worth  infinitely  more,  and  therefore 
refused  to  sell  him  the  work  of  his  own  hands,  and  it  was  preserv- 
ed with  great  veneration  in  the  'church,  where  it  continued  till 
Cologne  became  one  of  the  cities  of  the  French  empire.  Rubens, 
to  the  powers  and  graces  before  ascribed  to  him,  united  the  virtue 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  233 

of  a  christian:  from  motives  of  piety  and  benevolence  he  adorned 
many  churches  and  convents  with  his  matchless  productions ; 
which,  as  if  the  hallowed  purpose  to  which  they  were  devoted 
had  inspired  him,  whilst  he  painted,  were  generally  the  most 
masterly  efforts  of  his  pencil. 

Thomas  a  Kempis,  so  celebrated  for  his  extraordinary  piety, 
was  born  in  the  neighbourhood  of  this  city  in  1380.  The  last 
edition  of  his  works  is  that  of  Cologne  1660,  3  vols,  folio;  his 
most  celebrated  work  was  entitled  *  De  Imitatione  Christi;'  which, 
on  account  of  its  great  piety  and  merit,  has  been  translated  into 
almost  every  living  language.  This  work  has  been  attempted  to 
be  ascribed  to  an  abbot  of  the  name  of  Gerson,  of  the  order  of  St. 
Benedict,  which  for  many  years  produced  severe  controversies 
between  the  canons  of  St.  Augustine,  to  which  Thomas  a  Kempis 
belonged,  and  the  Benedictines. 

The  celebrated  William  Caxton  opened  his  printing  office 
here  in  1471,  and  printed  the  work  of  Le  Fevre,  which  was  three 
years  afterwards  published  in  London,  where  he  had  the  honour 
of  being  the  first  to  introduce  the  invaluable  art  of  printing.  Adam 
Schule  the  mathematician,  who  died  at  Pekin,  was  a  calendar 
here.  Vondel  the  Dutch  Virgil  was  born  here,  as  Was  the  won- 
derful Maria  Schurman,  who  was  well  versed  in  twelve  languages., 
and  wrote  five  classically,  besides  excelling  in  every  accomplish- 
ment then  known.  Excess  of  genius  and  learning  made  her  me- 
lancholy mad,  and  she  died  from  an  inordinate  debauch  in  eating 
spiders. 

The  Town  House  is  a  very  ancient  edifice,  and  contains  the 
only  specimen  of  Grecian  architecture  in  the  cityT  There  were 
three  ecclesiastical  electorates  in  Germany,  viz.  Cologne,  May- 
ence,  and  Treves,  which  have  been  abolished  by  Napoleon.  The 
revenues  of  the  elector  of  Cologne  amounted  to  upwards  of  two 
hundred  thousand  pounds.  Cologne  must  have  been  declining  for 
some  centuries,  for  in  the  year  1200  it  was  capable  of  furnishing 
thirty  thousand  men  for  the  field,  a  number  which  its  present 
population  is  said  not  to  exceed.  The  whole  of  the  trade  of  this 
town  was  extensive  before  the  last  war,  and  at  one  period,  in  spite 

2G 


234  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

of  its  bigotted  rulers,  it  was  one  of  the  richest  and  most  nourishing 
cities  in  Germany :  its  traders  carry  outward  annually  large  quan- 
tities of  salted  provisions  from  Westphalia,  iron  from  the  forges 
of  Nassau,  wood  from  the  Upper  Rhine  and  the  Neckar,  wine, 
hemp,  tobacco,  brass,  tufo  stone,  tobacco-pipe  clay,  millet,  gins, 
dried  fruits,  potash,  copper,  ribbands,  stockings,  and  lace:  and 
they  purchase  of  the  Dutch  paper,  oil,  cottons,  groceries,  spices, 
medicinal  drugs,  also  for  dyeing,  and  English  lead  and  tin. 

The  policy  of  the  French  government  since  it  has  assumed 
a  settled  form,  has  very  much  directed  its  attention  to  the  de- 
pressed state  of  the  manufactures  of  Cologne,  which  formerly 
employed  eleven  thousand  children,  and  under  its  auspices  there 
are  several  fabrics  in  a  very  flourishing  condition,  particularly 
those  for  manufacturing  stuffs  and  ribbands,  and  a  great  deal  of 
iron  is  now  wrought  in  this  city.  The  university  is  at  a  very  low 
ebb,  in  consequence  of  so  many  young  men  having  embraced  the 
profession  of  arms.  This  university  was  once  very  celebrated,  and 
was  the  most  ancient  in  Germany,  having  been  founded  in  1380. 
Pope  Urban  the  Sixth  paid  it  the  following  compliment,  in  allu- 
sion to  its  having  given  birth  to  the  college  of  Louvaine: 

Matre  pulehra  filia  pulchrior. 

This  maternal  university  was  divided  into  theology,  law,  medi- 
cine, and  philosophy;  but  has  not  the  only  celebrity  of  having  sent 
into  the  world  many  enlightened  men. 

In  the  department  of  Cologne  the  vineyards  began  first  to  ap- 
pear. The  vines  in  the  garden  grounds  of  the  city  are  said  to 
have  yielded  seven  hundred  and  fourteen  thousand  gallons  of 
wine.  The  wines  are  not  attempted  to  be  cultivated  higher  north. 

During  my  stay  at  Cologne  I  visited  the  French  parades  every 
morning  and  evening.  As  the  parades  in  France  used  to  be  con- 
fined to  the  morning,  it  was  natural  to  conjecture  that  some  new 
and  great  political  storm  was  collecting,  for  which  the  French 
emperor  was  preparing  by  redoubled  activity  and  energy.  At 
these  parades  the  conscripts,  after  having  undergone  a  brief  dril- 
ling, were  incorporated  with  the  veteran  troops ;  to  wheel,  to  form 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  235 

close  column,  to  load,  fire,  and  charge  with  the  bayonet,  seemed 
to  be  all  the  motions  which  were  attended  to.  Instead  of  forming 
the  line,  as  with  us,  with  exquisite  nicety,  but  little  attention  was 
paid  to  it,  for  a  more  slovenly  one  I  never  witnessed ;  but  by  thus 
simplifying  the  manoeuvres,  and  confining  the  attention  of  the 
soldier  only  to  the  useful  part  of  his  duty,  a  conscript  is  qualified 
to  march  to  the  field  of  battle  with  the  rest  of  the  troops  in  five 
days.  But  little  attention  was  paid  to  the  dress  of  the  men,  who 
were  uniform  only  in  a  short  blue  coat  with  white  or  red  facings, 
and  appeared  to  be  left  at  full  liberty  to  consult  their  own  taste  or 
finances  in  every  other  article,  for  some  wore  breeches,  some  pan- 
taloons, some  appeared  with  gaiters,  some  without,  some  had 
shoes,  and  others  half-boots.  » 


236  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND 


CHAPTER  XXI. 


REMARKS  ON  THE  FRENCH   ARMJf ORIGIN    OF    THE    CONSCRIP- 
TION  ROBESPIERRE FRENCH  SOLDIERS POLICY    OF   THE 

GENERALS MILITARY     VANITY BULLETINS MODE     OF 

ATTACK RHENISH     CONFEDERATION ACT    OF     IMPERIAL 

ABDICATION. 

\ 

AS  I  gazed  upon  these  men,  whose  appearance  was  slovenly, 
I  was  lost  m  amazement,  by  reflecting  that  they  were  part  of  that 
military  force  which  had  made  itself  terrible  to  so  large  a  portion 
of  Europe,  which  in  its  first  organization  was  composed  of  men, 
many  of  whom  had  never  had  a  musket  in  their  hands,  and  com- 
manded by  generals  who  had  never  witnessed  a  military  manoeu- 
vre ;  many  of  the  most  shining  of  whom  had  undergone  an  im- 
mediate transition  from  the  most  peaceful,  and  even  the  most 
subordinate  occupations  in  life,  to  conduct  armies  to  the  field  of 
battle,  to  confront  and  rout  some  of  the  prime,  veteran  troops  of 
nations,  long  renowned  for  their  eminence  and  military  character. 
Robespierre  may  be  considered  as  having  laid  the  foundation  of 
all  the  military  glory  of  France,  and  by  the  unexampled  energy 
and  prospective  acuteness  of  his  measures,  to  have  accomplished 
a  system  by  which  France  has  achieved  so  many  brilliant  victories. 
No  one  but  a  tyrant,  who  to  a  sanguinary  soul  united  profound 
penetration,  could  have  accomplished  what  he  did.  He  swept 
away  in  a  deep  and  impetuous  stream  of  blood  the  immediate 
branches  of  the  royal  family,  the  court,  its  valuable  and  its  ob- 
noxious appendages,  and  made  a  clear  arena  to  act  upon.  In  the 
name  of  Liberty  he  invoked  those  who  were  favourably  disposed 
to  her  cause,  and  by  terror  he  forced  the  reluctant  to  sustain  the 
miseries  and  perils  of  a  camp.  Glory  or  the  guillotine  were  eter- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  237 

nally  before  the  eyes  of  the  republican  commanders,  who  thus 
stimulated,  never  revolted* at  a  profuse  expenditure  of  life,  nor 
considered  any  victory  dearly  obtained,  so  that  it  was  obtained:  the 
soldiers  were  all  young  men,  amongst  many  of  whom  high  ardour 
and  a  passion  for  heroic  enterprize,  characteristic  of  that  season 
of  life,  prevailed,  which  soon  spread  with  electric  influence  upon 
the  more  considerate,  prudent,  and  even  timid  part  of  the  body. 
Thus  impelled,  they  pushed  on,  and  soon  felt  their  enthusiasm 
redouble,  upon  beholding  the  brilliant  impression  which  they 
made  upon  troops  inured  to  war  and  led  by  distinguished  com- 
manders, who  receded  before  them,  from  a  conviction  that  they 
could  only  hope  to  repel  the  attack  by  an  assimilation  of  tactics 
and  a  lavish  waste  of  blood,  a  consideration  which  frequently  for- 
ced the  followers  of  the  old  school  to  meditate  when  they  ought 
to  have  acted. 

It  is  a  remark  in  frequent  use,  that  the  efficiency  of  an  army 
may  be  measured  by  the  skill  of  the  general;  but  the  French  sol- 
diers have  expanded  the  observation,  and  have  exhibited  the  won- 
derful spectacle  of  skilful  soldiers  fighting  under,  and  frequently 
enlarging  the  views  and  combinations  of  able  generals.  The  ani- 
mal organization  of  Frenchmen  befits  them  for  soldiers;  their 
supple  muscular  form  and  height  seldom  exceeding  five  feet  five 
or  six  inches,  admit  of  great  activity  of  movement,  and  the  sup- 
port of  great  fatigue :  their  minds  quick,  volatile,  inquisitive,  and 
fertile  in  expedients,  enable  them  to  see  the  intentions  of  their 
commanding  officers  in  a  movement,  which,  to  the  soldiers  of 
many  other  countries  would  only  be  known  by  results.  The 
French  commanders  knew  how  to  gratify  that  national  cast  of  in- 
tellect so  useful  to  their  operations,  by  frequently  imparting  to  a 
soldier  of  a  company,  for  the  purpose  of  wider  communication, 
the  principal  movements  in  contemplation  previous  to  their  en- 
gaging. The  vanity  of  a  French  soldier  is  also  another  most 
valuable  quality  in  his  composition :  he  takes  the  deepest  interest  in 
the  execution  of  every  order,  because  he  thoroughly  believes  that 
he  is  acquainted  with  all  its  objects ;  and  upon  the  achievement  of 


238  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND, 

a  victory,  there  is  scarcely  a  French  drummer  who  would  hesitate 
endeavouring  to  make  his  hearer  believe,  that  the  fortune  of  the  day 
was  owing  to  some  judicious  idea  of  his  own:  to  this  vanity  the  mili- 
tary bulletins  which  announce  successes  in  all  the  pomp  of  language, 
or  convert  a  disaster  into  a  retrograde  victory,  are  addressed;  for 
a  Frenchman,  even  more  than  an  Englishman,  almost  always  be- 
lieves what  he  is  told,  and  is  ever  the  last  to  confess  a  defeat.  It 
is  a  rule  with  the  French  officers  to  give  their  troops  as  little  trou- 
ble as  possible  when  not  actually  in  service,  and  to  keep  them  per- 
petually upon  the  alert  when  the  campaign  has  commenced ;  by 
this  measure  their  troops,  contrary  to  a  received  opposite  notion, 
are  generally  fresher  than  other  troops;  and  as  they  are  mostly 
composed  of  young  men,  are  capable  of  marching  more  rapidly 
and  longer  than  soldiers  of  mixed  seasons  of  life.  The  French 
have  another  great  advantage  in  their  plan  of  combat,  which  re- 
sembles the  mode  of  engaging  at  sea,  practised  so  gloriously  by 
the  late  immortal  Nelson,  that  of  beating  against  the  centre  of  an 
enemy's  line  until  they  penetrate  it;  this  they  have  several  times 
successfully  effected,  by  that  almost  endless  reinforcement  which 
the  arbitrary  levies  furnish,  and  which  in  a  moment  supply  the 
vacancy  made  by  the  bullet  and  the  bayonet.  To  prevent  any  ill 
consequences  from  the  impetuous  temerity  which  might  attend 
the  first  attack,  a  considerable  corps  of  reserve  is  always  formed 
of  the  more  experienced  troops,  who  are  able  to  support  their 
comrades  in  the  front,  when  too  severely  pressed,  or  of  forcing 
them  to  rally,  should  they  discover  any  disposition  to  fly.  To  their 
flying  artillery,  which  are  served  by  their  best  soldiers,  wherever 
the  ground  will  best  admit,  they  are  also  eminently  indebted  for 
their  success :  yet,  with  all  those  advantages,  striking  and  eminent 
as  they  are,  and  the  negative  assistance  which  she  derived  from 
the  frequently  imbecile  conduct  of  the  enemy,  France  would  per- 
haps never  have  been  crowned  with  the  success  which  has  mark- 
ed her  march,  had  not  her  population  been  enormous,  and  had 
not  the  stupendous  idea  of  placing  a  great  portion  of  that  popula- 
tion, by  the  novelty  of  a  conscription,  at  the  disposal  of  her  ruler, 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  239 

been  developed  by  the  mighty  monster  *  whose  name  I  have  be- 
fore mentioned.  If  she  had  had  twenty  thousand  men  on  the  plains 
of  Maida,  she  would  have  been  spared  the  disgrace  of  seeing 
7,000  of  her  chosen  soldiers  fly  before  4,795  of  the  British  arms 
under  the  gallant  Stuart. 

To  comprehend  the  present  political  state  of  those  cities  on 
the  right  and  left  banks  of  the  Rhine,  which  I  visited  in  my  way 
to  the  south  of  Germany,  it  is  necessary  to  lay  before  the  reader 
the  following  memorable  document,  and  letter  of  abdication,  by 
which  the  Germanic  empire  is  annihilated,  and  Bonaparte  is 
raised  to  be  imperial  chief  of  a  mighty  feudatory  confederation, 
in  the  organization  of  which  new  sovereign  dignities  have  been 
conferred,  and  new  dominions  allotted,  for  securing  his  conquests 
in  Germany. 

Ratisbon,  August  2. 

WHEREAS,  his  Majesty  the  Emperor  of  the  French,  and 
their  Majesties  the  Kings  of  Bavaria  and  Wirtemberg,  their  Elec- 
toral Highnesses  the  Arch-chancellor  and  the  Elector  of  Baden, 
his  Imperial  Highness  the  Duke  of  Berg,  and  their  Highnesses  the 
Landgrave  of  Hesse  Darmstadt,  the  Princes  of  Nassau  Weilbourg 
and  Nassau  Usingen,  of  Hohenzollern-Hechingen  and  Siegma- 
ringen,  Salm-Salm,  and  Salm-Kyrburg,  Isenburg,  Birstein,  and 
Lichtenstein;  the  Duke  of  Ahremberg,  and  the  Count  of  Leyen; 
being  desirous  to  secure,  through  proper  stipulations,  the  internal 
and  external  peace  of  southern  Germany,  which,  as  experience 
for  a  long  period  and  recently  has  shown,  can  derive  no  kind  of 
guarantee  from  the  existing  German  constitution,  have  appointed 
to  be  their  plenipotentiaries  to  this  effect ;  namely,  his  Majesty 
the  Emperor  of  the  French,  Charles  Maurice  Talleyrand,  Prince 
of  Benevento,  minister  of  his  foreign  affairs;  his  Majesty,  the 

*  For  this  sanguinary  tyrant  the  following  epitaph  was  well  penned. 

Passant,  ne  pleure  point  son  sort; 
Car,  s'il  vivait,  tu  serais  mort. 

Ye  who  pass  by  his  grave,  need  not  weep  that  he's  gone, 
Had  he  Hv'd,  ye  would  now  be  as  cold  as  this  stone. 


240  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

King  of  Bavaria,  his  minister  plenipotentiary,  A.  Von  Cetto;  his 
Majesty,  the  King  of  Wirtemberg,  his  state -minister  the  Count 
of  Wintzingerode ;  the  Elector  Arch-chancellor,  his  ambassador 
extraordinary  the  count  of  Beust;  the  Elector  of  Baden,  his  cabi- 
net minister  the  Baron  of  Reitzenstein;  his  Imperial  Highness 
the  Duke  of  Berg,  Baron  Von  Scheie;  the  Landgrave  of  Hesse 
Darmstadt,  his  ambassador  extraordinary  Baron  Von  Pappen- 
heim;  the  Princes  of  Nassau,  Weilburg,  and  Usingen,  Baron 
Von  Gagern;  the  Princes  of  Hohenzollern-Hechingen  and  Sieg- 
•maringen,  Major  Von  Fischer;  the  Prince  of  Isenburg-Birtsein, 
his  privy -counsellor  M.  Von  Gretzen;  the  Duke  of  Ahremberg, 
and  the  Count  of  Leyen,  Mr.  Durand  St.  Andre,  who  have  agreed 
upon  the  following  articles  : 

Art.  1 .  The  states  of  the  contracting  princes  (enumerated  as 
in  the  preamble)  shall  be  for  ever  separated  from  the  Germanic 
body,  and  united  by  a  particular  confederation,  under  the  desig- 
nation of  "  The  confederated  States  of  the  Empire" 

2.  All  the  laws  of  the  empire,  by  which  they  have  been  hither- 
to bound,  shall  be  in  future  null  and  without  force,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  the  statutes  relative  to  debts,  determined  in  the  recess 
of  the  deputation  of  1803,  and  in  the  paragraph  upon  the  naviga- 
tion to  be  funded  upon  the  shipping  tolls,  which  statutes  shall 
remain  in  full  vigour  and  execution. 

3.  Each  of  the  contracting  princes  renounces  such  of  his  titles 
as  refer  to  his  connexion  with  the  German  empire  ;  and  they  will, 
on  the  1  st  of  August,  declare  their  entire  separation  from  it. 

4.  The  Elector  Arch-chancellor  shall  take  the  title  of  Prince 
Primate  and  Most  Eminent  Highness,  which  title  shall  convey  no 
prerogative  derogatory  to  the  entire  sovereignty  which  every  one 
of  the  contracting  princes  shall  enjoy. 

5.  The  Elector  of  Baden,  the  Duke  of  Berg,  and  the  Land- 
grave of  Hesse  Darmstadt,  shall  take  the  titles  of  grand  Dukes, 
and  enjoy  the  rights,  honours,  and  prerogatives  belonging  to  the 
kingly  dignity.  Their  rank  and  precedence  shall  be  in  the  same 
order  as  mentioned  in  Article  I.  The  chief  of  the  houses  of  Nas- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  241 

sau  shall  take  the  title  of  Duke,  and  the  Count  of  Leyen  that  of 
Prince. 

6.  The  affairs  of  the  confederation  shall  be  discussed  in  a  con- 
gress of  the  union  (Diete),  whose  place  of  sitting  shall  be  in 
Francfort,  and  the  congress  shall  be  divided  into  two  colleges,  the 
kings  and  the  princes. 

7.  The  members  of  the  league  must  be  independent  of  e very- 
foreign  power.  They  cannot,  in  any  wise,  enter  into  any  other  ser- 
vice, but  that  of  the  states  of  the  confederation,  and  its  allies. 
Those  who  have  been  hitherto  in  the  service  of  a  foreign  power, 
and  choose  to  adhere  to  it,  shall  abdicate  their  principality  in  favour 
of  one  of  their  children 

8.  Should  any  of  the  said  princes  be  disposed  to  alienate  the 
whole  or  any  part  of  his  sovereignty,  he  can  only  do  it  in  favour 
of  the  confederates.  < 

9.  All  disputes,  which  may  arise  among  the  members  of  the 
league,  shall  be  settled  in  the  assembly  at  Francfort. 

10.  In  this  the  Prince  Primate  shall  preside,  and  when  it  shall 
happen,  that  the  two  colleges  have  to  deliberate  upon  any  subject, 
he  shall  then  preside  in  the  college  of  Kings,  and  the  Duke  of 
Nassau  in  that  of  the  Princes. 

11.  The  time,  when  the  congress  of  the  league,  or  either  of 
the  colleges,  shall  have  particularly  to  assemble,  the  manner  of 
the  convocation,  the  subjects  upon  which  they  may  have  to  delibe- 
rate, the  manner  of  forming  their  conclusions,  and  putting  them 
in  execution,  shall  be  determined  in  a  fundamental  statute,  which 
the  Prince  Primate  shall  give  in  proposition,  within  a  month  after 
the  notification  presented  at  Ratisbon.  This  statute  shall  be  ap- 
proved of  by  the  confederated  states;  this  statute  shall  also  regu- 
late the  respective  rank  of  the  members  of  the  college  of  princes. 

12.  The  Emperor  shall  be  proclaimed  protector  of  the  confe- 
deration. On  the  demise  of  the  Primate,  he  shall,  in  such  quality, 
as  often  name  the  successor. 

13.  His  Majesty  the  King  of  Bavaria  cedes  to  the  King  of 
Wirtemberg,  the   Lordship  of  Wisensteig,  and  renounces  the 

2H 


242  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

rights  which  he  might  have  upon  Weiblingen,  on  account  of 
Burgan. 

14.  His  Majesty  the  King  of  Wirtemberg  makes  over  to  the 
Grand  Duke  of  Berg,  the  country  of  Bondorff,  Brenlingen,  and 
Villingen,  the  part  of  the  territory  of  the  latter  city  which  lies  on 
the  right  bank  of  the  Brigoetz,  and  the  city  of  Tuttlingen,  with 
the  manor  of  the  same  name  belonging  to  it,  on  the  right  bank  of 
the  Danube. 

15.  The  grand  Duke  of  Baden  cedes  to  the  King  of  Wirtem- 
berg, the  city  and  territory  of  Biebrach,  with  their  dependen- 
cies. 

16.  The  Duke  of  Nassau  cedes  to  the  grand  Duke  of  Berg, 
the  city  of  Deutz  and  its  territory. 

17.  His  Majesty  the  King  of  Bavaria  shall  unite  to  his  states 
the  city  and  territory  of  Nuremberg,  and  the  Teutonic  comitials 
of  Rohr  and  Waldstetten. 

18.  His  Majesty  the  King  of  Wirtemberg  shall  receive  the 
Lordship  of  Wisensteig,  the  city  and  territory  of  Biebrach,  with 
their  dependencies,  the  cities  of  Waldsee  and  Schettingen,  the 
comitial  lands  of  Karpfenburg,  Lancheim,  and  Alchausen,  with 
the  exceptions  of  the  Lordship  of  Hohenfeld,  and  the  abbey  of 
Wreiblingen. 

19.  The  grand  Duke  of  Baden  shall  receive  the  Lordship  of 
Bonndorff,  the  cities  of  Vrenlingen,  Villingen,  and  Tuttlingen, 
the  parts  of  their  territories  which  are  given  to  him  in  Article 
1 4 ;  and  along  with  these  the  comitials  of  Bolken  and  Freyburg. 

20.  The  grand  Duke  of  Berg  shall  receive  the  city  and  terri- 
tory of  Deutz,  the  city  and  manor  of  Koningswinter,  and  the  ma- 
nor of  Wistich,  as  ceded  by  the  Duke  of  Nassau. 

2 1 .  The  grand  Duke  of  Darmstadt  shall  unite  to  his  states  the 
burgraviat  of  Freidberg,  taking  to  himself  the  sovereignty  only 
during  the  lifetime  of  the  present  possessor,  and  the  whole  at  his 
death. 

22.  The  prince  Primate  shall  take  possession  of  the  city  of 
Francforton  the  Maine,  and  its  territory,  as  his  sovereign  property. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  243 

23.  The  Prince  of  Hohenzollern  Seigmaringen  shall  receive 
as  his  sovereign  property  the  lordships  of  Aschberg  and  Hohen- 
fels,  depending  on  the  comitial  of  Alchausen,  the  convents  of 
Klosterwald  and  Haltzthal,  and  the  sovereignty  over  the  imperial 
equestrian  estates  that  lie  in  his  dominions,  and  in  the  territory  to 
the  north  of  the  Danube,  wherever  his  sovereignty  extends; 
namely,  the  lordships  of  Gamerdingen  and  Hottingen. 

24.  The  members  of  the  confederation  shall  exercise  all  the 
rights  of  sovereignty  henceforward  as  follow: 

His  Majesty  the  King  of  Bavaria,  over  the  principality  of 
Schwartzenberg,  the  county  of  Castell,  the  lordships  of  Speinfeld 
and  Wissenheid,  the  dependencies  of  the  principality  of  Hohen- 
lohe,  which  are  included  in  the  margraviate  of  Anspach,  and  the 
territory  of  Rothenburg,  namely,  the  great  manors  of  Schillings 
furstand  Kirchberg  the  county  of  Sternstein,  the  principality  of 
Oettingen,  the  possessions  of  the  Prince  of  La  Tour  to  the  north 
of  the  principality  of  Neuberg,  the  county  of  Edelstetten,  the  pos- 
sessions of  the  Prince  and  of  the  Count  of  Fugger,  the  burgraviat 
of  Winteriedden ;  lastly,  the  lordships  of  Buxheim  and  Tann- 
hansein,  and  over  the  entire  of  the  highway  from  Memmingen  to 
Lindau. 

His  Majesty  the  King  of  Wirtemberg,  over  the  possessions 
of  the  Prince  and  Count  of  Truchess  Waldberg,  the  counties  of 
Baindt  Egloff  Guttenzell,  Hechbach,  Ysuy,  Koenigsek  Aullen- 
dorff,  Ochenhausen,  Roth,  Schussenried,  and  Weissenau,  the 
lordships  of  Mietingen  and  Sunningen,  New  Ravensburg,  Than- 
heim,  Warthausen,  and  Weingarten,  with  the  exception  of  the 
lordship  of  Haguenau,  the  possessions  of  the  Prince  of  Thurn, 
with  the  exception  of  those  not  mentioned  above;  the  lordship  of 
Strasburg,  and  the  manor  of  Ostraiz,  the  lordships  of  Gundelfin- 
gen  and  Neussen,  the  parts  of  the  country  of  Limburg  Gaildorf, 
which  his  Majesty  does  not  possess,  all  the  unalienated  posses- 
sions of  the  princes  of  Hohenlohe,  and  over  a  part  of  the  manor 
formerly  belonging  to  Mentz,  Krautheim,  on  the  left  bank  of  the 
Jaxt. 


244  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

The  Grand  Duke  of  Baden  over  the  principality  of  Fursten- 
berg,  with  the  exception  of  the  lordships  of  Gundelfingen  and 
Neussen;  also  over  Trochtelfingen,  Jungenau,  and  part  of  the  ma- 
nor of  Moeskirch,  which  lies  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Danube,  over 
the  lordship  of  Hagenau,  county  of  Thuengen,  landgraviate  of 
Klcttgau,  manors  of  Neidenau  and  Billigheim,  principality  of 
Leiningen,  the  possessions  of  Lowenstein  Wertheim,  upon  the 
left  bank  of  the  Maine  (with  the  exceptions  of  the  country  of 
Lowenstein),  and  the  lordships  of  Hailack,  Bonnberg,  and  Habitz- 
heim ;  and  lastly,  over  the  possessions  of  the  Princes  of  Salm- 
Reiser-scheid  Krantheim,  to  the  north  of  the  Jaxt. 

The  grand  Duke  of  Berg  over  the  lordships  of  Lymburg- 
Styrum,  Brugg,  Hardenberg,  Gimborn,  and  Neustadt,  Wildcn- 
berg ;  the  counties  of  Homburg,  Bentheim,  Steinfurt,  and  Horst- 
marn,  the  possessions  of  the  Duke  of  Looz;  the  counties  of  Sie- 
gen,  Dillenburg  (the  manors  of  Werheim  and  Burgach  excepted) 
over  Stadamar,  the  lordships  Westerburgh,  Schadeck,  and  Beil- 
stein,  and  the  properly  so  called,  part  of  Runkel,  on  the  right 
bank  of  the  Lahn.  In  order  to  establish  a  communication  between 
Cleves  and  the  above-named  possessions,  the  grand  Duke  shall 
have  a  free  passage  through  the  states  of  the  Prince  of  Salm. 
His  Highness  the  grand  Duke  of  Darmstadt  over  the  lordships 
of  Brenberg,  Haibach,  the  manor  of  Habizheim,  county  of  Erbach, 
lordship  of  Illenstadt,  a  part  of  the  county  of  Kodigsheim,  which 
is  possessed  by  the  Prince  of  Stolberg  Gedern ;  over  the  posses- 
sions of  the  Baron  of  Riedefel,  that  are  included  in,  or  lie  conti- 
guous to  his  estates,  namely,  the  jurisdictions  of  Lauserbach, 
Stockhausen,  Mort,  and  Truenstern,  the  possessions  of  the  Prin- 
ces and  Counts  of  Solms,  in  Weterrau,  exclusive  of  the  manors 
of  Hohen-Solms,  Braunsels,  and  Grietenstein ;  lastly,  the  coun- 
ties of  Wittgenstein,  and  Berleberg,  and  the  manor  of  Hessen- 
Homburg,  which  is  in  possession  of  the  line  of  that  name. 

His  most  serene  Eminence  the  Prince  Primate,  over  the  pos- 
sessions of  the  Princes  and  Counts  of  Lowenstein  Wertheim,  on 
the  right  bank  of  the  Maine,  and  over  the  county  of  Rheneck. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  245 

Nassau  Usingen,  and  Nassau  Weilberg,  over  the  manors  of 
Diersdorf,  Alteneveid  Neursburgh,  and  the  part  of  the  county  of 
Bassenburg,  which  belongs  to  the  Prince  of  Wied-Runkel,  over 
the  counties  of  Neuweid,  and  Holzappel,  the  lordship  of  Schom- 
burg,  the  county  of  Deiz  and  its  dependencies ;  over  that  part  of 
the  village  of  Metzselden,  which  appertains  to  the  Prince  of  Nas- 
sau Fulda,  the  manors  of  Werhem  and  Balbach,  that  part  of  the 
lordship  of  Runkel,  situate  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Lahn,  over  the 
knightdoms  of  Kransburg ;  and  lastly  over  the  manors  of  Solms, 
Braunsels,  Hohen  Solms,  and  Griesenstein. 

The  Prince  of  Hohenzollern-Siegmaringen,  over  Trochteinn- 
gen,  Jungenan,  Strasburg,  Manor  Ostrach,  and  the  part  of  the 
lordship  of  Moeskirch  which  lies  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Danube. 

Salm  Kyrberg,  over  the  lordship  of  Gehmen. 

Isenburg-Burstein,  over  the  possessions  of  the  Counts  of  Isen- 
burg,  Budingen,  Wechtersbach,  and  Mehrholz,  without  any  pre- 
tensions on  the  part  of  the  branch  in  the  present  possession  bchig 
urged  against  him. 

Ahremberg,  over  the  county  of  Dulmen. 

25.  The  members  of  the  confederation  shall  take  the  sove* 
reignty  of  the  imperial  knightdoms  included  within  their  bounda- 
ries. Such  of  the  lands  as  are  between  the  states  of  two  of  the 
confederates,  shall  be  with  respect  to  the  sovereignty,  partitioned 
as  exactly  as  possible  between  them,  that  no  misunderstanding 
with  respect  to  the  sovereignty  may  arise. 

26.  The  rights  of  sovereignty  consist  in  exercising  the  legis- 
lation, superior  jurisdiction,  administration  of  justice,  military 
conscription,  or  recruiting,  and  levying  taxes. 

27.  The  present  reigning  Princes  or  Counts,  shall  enjoy  as 
patrimonial  or  private  property  ail  the  domains  they  at  present 
occupy,  as  well  as  all  the  rights  of  manor  and  entail,  that  do  not 
essentially  appertain  to  the  sovereignty;  namely,  the  right  of  su- 
perior and  inferior  administration  of  justice,  in  common  and  cri- 
minal cases,  tenths,  patronage,  and  other  rights,  with  the  reve- 
nues therefrom  accruing.  Their  domains  and  chatceis,  as  far  as 
relates  to  the  taxes,  shall  be  annexed  to  the  Prince  of  that  house 


246  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

under  whose  sovereignty  they  come;  or  if  no  Prince  of  the  house 
be  in  possession  of  immoveable  property,  in  that  case  they  shall 
be  put  upon  an  equality  with  the  domains  of  Princes  of  the  most 
privileged  class.  These  domains  cannot  be  sold  or  given  to  any 
Prince  out  of  the  confederation,  without  being  first  offered  to  the 
Prince  under  whose  sovereignty  they  are  placed. 

28.  In  penal  cases,  the  now  reigning  Princes  and  Counts,  and 
their  heirs,  shall  preserve  their  present  privileges  of  trial.  They 
shall  be  tried  by  their  peers.  Their  fortune  shall  not  in  any  event 
be  confiscated,  but  the  revenues  may,  during  the  life  time  of  the 
criminal,  be  sequestrated. 

29.  The  confederate  states  shall  contribute  to  the  payment  of 
the  debts  of  their  circle,  as  well  for  their  old  as  their  new  posses- 
sions. The  debts  of  the  circle  of  Suabia,  shall  be  put  to  the  account 
of  the  Kings  of  Bavaria  and  Wirtemberg,  the  grand  Duke  of  Ba- 
den, the  Princes  of  Hohenzollern,  Hechingen,  and  Siegmaringen, 
the  Prince  of  Lichtenstein,  and  Prince  of  Leyen,  in  proportion  to 
their  respective  possessions  in  Suabia. 

SO.  The  proper  debts  of  a  Prince  or  Count  who-falls  under  the 
sovereignty  of  another  state,  shall  be  defrayed  by  the  said  state 
conjointly  with  the  new  reigning  Prince,  in  the  proportion  of  the 
revenues  which  that  state  shall  require,  and  of  the  part  which  by 
the  present  treaty  is  allotted  to  attach  to  the  attributes  of  the  pre- 
sent sovereigns. 

3 1 .  The  present  reigning  Princes  or  Counts  may  determine 
the  place  of  their  residence  where  they  will.  Where  they  reside 
in  the  dominions  of  a  member  or  ally  of  the  confederation,  or  in 
any  of  the  possessions  which  they  hold  out  of  the  territory  of  the 
confederation,  they  may  draw  their  rents  or  capitals  without  pay- 
ing any  tax  whatever  upon  them. 

32.  Those  persons  who  hold  places  in  the  administration  of 
the  countries,  which  hereby  come  under  the  sovereignty  of  the 
confederates,  and  who  shall  not  be  retained  by  the  new  sovereign, 
shall  receive  a  pension  according  to  the  situation  they  have  held. 

33.  The  numbers  of  military  or  religious  orders  who  shall  lose 
their  incomes,  or  whose  common  property  shall  be  secularised, 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  047 

shall  receive  during  life  a  yearly  stipend  proportioned  to  their 
former  income,  their  dignity,  and  their  age,  and  which  shall  be 
secured  upon  the  goods  of  the  revenues  of  which  they  were  in  the 
enjoyment. 

34.  The  confederates  renounce  reciprocally,  for  themselves 
and  their  posterity,  all  claims  which  they  might  have  upon  the  pos- 
sessions of  other  members  of  the  confederation,  the  eventual  right 
of  succession  alone  excepted,  and  this  only  in  the  event  of  the 
family  having  died  out,  which  now  is  in  possession  of  the  territo- 
ries and  objects  to  which  such  a  right  might  be  advanced. 

35.  Between  the  Emperor  of  the  French  and  the  Confederat- 
ed States,  federatively  and  individually,  there  shall  be  an  alliance, 
by  virtue  of  which,  every  continental  war  in  which  one  or  either 
parties  shall  be  engaged,  shall  be  common  to  all. 

36.  In  the  event  of  any  foreign  or  neighbouring  power  making 
preparations  for  war,  the  contracting  parties,  in  order  to  prevent 
surprise,  shall,  upon  the  requisition  of  the  minister  of  one  of  them 
at  the  assembly  of  the  league  at  Francfort,  arm  also.  And  as  the 
contingent  of  the  allies  is  subdivided  into  four  parts,  the  assembly 
shall  decide  how  many  of  those  shall  be  called  into  activity.  The 
armament,  however,  shall  only  take  place  upon  the  summons  of 
the  Emperor,  to  each  of  the  contracting  parties. 

37.  His  Majesty  the  King  of  Bavaria,  binds  himself  to  fortify 
Augsburg  and  Lindau ;  in  the  first  of  these  places  to  form  and 
maintain  artillery  establishments,  and  in  the  second  to  keep  a 
quantity  of  muskets  and  ammunition,  sufficient  for  a  reserve,  as 
well  as  a  baking  establishment  at  Augsburg,  sufficient  to  supply 
the  armies  without  delay,  in  the  event  of  war. 

38.  The  contingent  of  each  is  determined  as  follows: 
France         -         -         200,000  Berg         -         -  5,000 
Bavaria        -         -           30,000             Darmstadt         -           4,000 
Wirtemberg        -            12,000             Nassau,  Hohenzol- 
Baden          -         -             8,000                 lern,  and  others        4,000 

39.  The  contracting  parties  will  admit  of  the  accession  of  other 
German  princes  and  states  in  all  cases  where  the  union  with  the 
confederation  may  be  found  consistent  with  the  general  intcre^i. 


248       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

40.  The  ratification  of  the  present  treaty  shall  be  exchanged 
between  the  contracting  parties,  on  the  25th  of  July  at  Munich. 
Done  at  Paris,  July  12,  1806. 

The  resignation  of  the  high  office  of  Emperor  of  Germany,  by 
Francis,  Emperor  of  Austria. 

Vienna,  August  7. 
We,  Francis  Second,  k.c. 

Since  the  peace  of  Presburgh  all  our  attention  and  all  our  care 
hjave  been  employed  to  fulfil  with  scrupulous  fidelity  all  the  en- 
gagements contracted  by  that  treaty,  to  preserve  to  our  subjects 
the  happiness  of  peace,  to  consolidate  every  where  the  amicable 
relations  happily  re-established,  waiting  to  discover  whether  the 
changes  caused  by  the  peace  would  permit  us  to  perform  our  im- 
portant duties,  as  chief  of  the  Germanic  empire,  conformably  to 
the  capitulation  of  election. 

The  consequences,  however,  which  ensued  from  some  articles 
of  the  treaty  of  Presburgh,  immediately  after  its  publication, 
which  still  exist,  and  those  events  generally  known,  which  faav< 
since  taken  place  in  the  Germanic  empire,  have  convinced  us  tha» 
it  will  be  impossible,  under  these  circumstances,  to  continue  the 
obligations  contracted  by  the  capitulation  of  election ;  and  even  if 
in  reflecting  on  these  political  relations  it  were  possible  to  ima- 
gine a  change  of  affairs,  the  convention  of  the  twelfth  of  July, 
signed  at  Paris,  and  ratified  by  the  contracting  parties,  relative  to 
an  entire  separation  of  several  considerable  states  of  the  empire, 
and  their  peculiar  confederation,  has  entirely  destroyed  every 
such  hope. 

Being  thus  convinced  of  the  impossibility  of  being  any  longer 
enabled  to  fulfil  the  duties  of  our  imperial  functions,  we  owe  it  to 
our  principles  and  our  duty,  to  renounce  a  crown  which  was  only 
valuble  in  our  eyes  whilst  we  were  able  to  enjoy  the  confidence  of 
the  electors,  princes,  and  other  states  of  our  Germanic  empire, 
and  to  perform  the  duties  which  were  imposed  upon  us.  We  de- 
clare, therefore,  by  these  presents,  that  we,  considering  as  dis- 
solved the  ties  which  have  hitherto  attached  us  to  the  states  of  the 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  249 

Germanic  empire;  that  we,  considering  as  extinguished  by  the 
confederation  of  the  states  of  the  Rhine,  the  charge  in  chief  of  the 
empire;  and  that  we,  considering  ourselves  thus  acquitted  of  all 
our  duties  towards  the  Germanic  empire,  do  resign  the  imperial 
crown  and  the  imperial  government.  We  absolve,  at  the  same 
time,  the  electors,  princes,  and  states,  and  all  that  belong  to  the 
empire,  particularly  the  members  of  the  supreme  tribunal,  and 
other  magistrates  of  the  empire,  from  those  duties  by  which  they 
were  united  to  us  as  the  legal  chief  of  the  empire,  according  to 
the  constitution. 

We  also  absolve  all  our  German  provinces  and  states  of  the 
empire  from  their  reciprocal  duties  toward  the  German  empire; 
and  we  desire,  in  incorporating  them  with  our  Austrian  states  as 
Emperor  of  Austria,  and  in  preserving  them  in  those  amicable 
relations  subsisting  with  the  neighbouring  powers  and  states,  that 
they  should  attain  that  height  of  prosperity  and  happiness  which 
is  the  end  of  all  our  desires,  and  the  object  of  our  dearest  wishes. 
Done  at  our  residence,  under  our  imperial  seal, 
Vienna,  the  6th  of  August,  1806.  FRANCIS. 

We,  Francis  Second,  &c.  In  abdicating  the  imperial  govern 
ment  of  the  empire,  we,  considering  it  as  the  last  effort  of  our  care, 
and  as  an  absolute  duty,  do  express  thus  publicly  a  desire  equally 
reasonably  and  just,  that  the  persons  who  have  hitherto  been  em- 
ployed in  the  administration  of  justice,  and  in  diplomatic  and 
other  affiairs,  for  the  good  of  the  whole  empire,  and  for  the  ser- 
vice of  the  chief  of  the  empire,  should  be  suitably  provided  for: 

The  care  which  all  the  states  of  the  empire  took  of  those  per- 
sons who  lost  their  places  by  the  affair  of  the  indemnity  in  1803, 
induces  us  to  hope  that  the  same  sentiments  of  justice  will  be  ex- 
tended to  those  individuals  who  have  hitherto  been  employed  in 
the  general  service,  who  have  been  chosen  in  all  parts  of  the 
Germanic  empire,  and  many  of  whom  have  quitted  other  profi- 
table places,  looking  forward  to  an  honourable  subsistence  for  life, 
and  which  should  not  be  wanting  to  them  on  account  of  their 

2  J 


250  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

fidelity,  and  the  integrity  and  capacity  with  which  they  have  exe- 
cuted their  functions : 

We  have,  therefore,  taken  the  resolution  of  preserving  to 
those  of  our  imperial  servants,  who  have  hitherto  drawn  their  sala- 
ries from  our  chamber,  the  same  appointments,  reserving  to  our- 
selves to  place  them  in  employments  in  the  service  of  our  here- 
ditary states ;  and  we  hope,  with  so  much  the  more  confidence, 
that  the  electors,  princes,  and  states  will  provide  for  the  imperial 
chamber  of  justice  of  the  empire,  and  the  chancellerie  of  the 
chamber  of  justice,  by  charging  themselves  voluntarily  with  this 
expense,  as  it  will  be  trifling  in  amount,  and  will  diminish  every 
year. 

As  to  the  chancellerie  of  the  aulic  council  of  the  empire,  the 
funds  destined  for  its  support  will  be  employed  to  provide  for  the 
wants  of  those  individuals  who  have  hitherto  drawn  from  thence 
their  salaries ;  this  will  serve  them  until  other  measures  may  be, 
taken. 

Done  in  our  capital  and  residence  of  Vienna,  under  our  impe- 
rial seal,  the  6th  of  August,  1806. 

FRANCIS. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  251 


CHAPTER  XXII. 


IMPERIAL  REGULATION  NECESSARY  TO  BE  KNOWN THE  DI- 
RECTOR OF  THE  BUREAU  DES  DILIGENCES  PAR  EAU SINGU- 
LAR   ADVENTURE A     SCRAPE A    STRATAGEM PASSAGE 

TO  BONN A  DISCOVERY EXCELLENT    EFFECT  OF  BRANDY 

THE  CITY  OF  BONN THE  MALL EFFECT  OF  BLACK 

PRESENT  STATE    OF    BONN THE    SEVEN    MOUNTAINS THE 

MONASTERY ANECDOTE     OF     THE    EMPRESS    JOSEPHINE 

BEAUTIFUL  SCENERY. 

IN  consequence  of  having  been  informed  the  preceding  even- 
ing that  an  imperial  decree  had  passed,  by  which  strangers  en- 
tering the  French  empire  were  permitted  to  bring  as  much  money 
into  it  as  they  chose,  but  were  not  suffered  to  take  out  of  it  more 
than  what  certain  officers  appointed  for  that  purpose  considered 
necessary  for  the  prosecution  of  their  journey,  the  surplus  passing 
in  the  nature  of  a  forfeiture  to  the  crown,  I  concealed  about  thirty 
ducats,  which  fell  within  this  description  of  overplus,  in  my  cravat, 
and  at  five  o'clock  in  the  morning,  marched  from  my  hotel  to  the 
bureau  des  diligences  par  eau,  a  distance  full  two  English  miles, 
to  be  searched  for  this  superfluity  of  cash,  previous  to  my  ascen- 
ding the  Rhine.  At  this  house  a  scene  took  place  which  perhaps 
has  not  often  occurred  to  travellers,  in  consequence  of  the  tem- 
porary apprehension  which  it  excited,  the  ridiculous  situation  in 
which  it  placed  me,  and  the  retributive  chastisement  which  it  in- 
flicted for  thus  venturing  upon  an  hostile  shore.  I  was  introduced 
into  a  room  looking  upon  the  Rhine  ;  at  the  bureau  sat  the  Direc- 
tor, a  man  who  wore  spectacles,  with  a  strongly  marked,  expres- 
sive countenance,  apparently  about  fifty  years  of  age ;  upon  my 
bowing  to  him  he  demanded  of  me,  in  German,  who  I  was  ?  I 


252  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

requested  him  to  address  me  in  French,  which  he  did,  repeating 
the  question.  I  told  him  I  was  an  American  going  to  the  Franc- 
fort  fair,  upon  which  he  put  down  his  spectacles,  and  running  up 
to  me,  squeezed  my  hand  with  a  violence  of  compression  infinitely 
more  painful  than  agreeable,  and  exclaimed  in  very  good  English, 
"  How  happy  is  this  day  to  me  !  for  I  too  am  an  American."  I  was 
obliged  to  return  the  affectionate  salutation,  and  also  to  express 
my  delight  in  having,  so  far  from  our  native  home,  met  with  a 
countryman.  He  then  asked  me  from  what  part  of  America  I 
came  ?  "  From  Baltimore,"  was  the  answer.  "  Happier  and  hap- 
pier!" cried  he  renewing  his  embrace,  "  for  I  was  born  there 
too."  At  this  moment  I  wished,  for  the  first  time  in  my  life,  all 
the  force  of  the  amor  fiatria  at  the  devil ;  but  there  was  no  time 
to  be  lost  in  meditating  upon  the  peril  and  awkwardness  of  my 
situation.  To  prevent,  as  much  as  possible  his  interrogating  me 
further  about  my  adopted  country,  I  addressed  with  all  possible 
fluency,  as  many  questions  as  I  could  suggest  respecting  Cologne, 
the  Rhine,  the  war ;  in  short,  I  touched  upon  every  subject  but 
what  had  an  American  tendency.  To  my  observations  he  bowed, 
to  my  questions  he  gave  very  brief  answers,  and  continued  ex- 
pressing his  delight  in  seeing  me,  a  delight  which  was  very  far 
from  being  reciprocal.  After  ordering  his  servants  to  bring  break- 
fast for  me,  which  I  did  not  decline,  although  I  had  already  taken 
that  meal  at  my  hotel,  for  fear  of  offending  him,  he  made  many  in- 
quiries after  some  persons  whom  he  named,  and  mentioned  to  be  of 
the  first  consequence  in  Baltimore.  I  gave  him  to  understand  that  I 
had  left  the  city  when  quite  a  boy;  but  upon  his  assuring  me  that  I 
must  remember  or  have  heard  of  the  persons  he  had  named,  I 
gave  him  to  understand  that  my  recollection  of  them  was  very- 
imperfect,  but  that  I  believed  they  had  perished  by  the  yellow 
fever;  upon  hearing  which  he  expressed  great  affliction,  observ- 
ing they  were  the  dearest  friends  he  had  in  Baltimore  before  he 
quitted  it,  about  fifteen  years  since.  In  this  uncomfortable  situ- 
ation I  sat  vis-a-vis  with  my  tormentor,  who  continued,  during 
breakfast,  to  overload  me  with  expressions  of  kindness.  At  last 
the  skipper  of  the  Rhine  boat  made  his  appearance,  with  the  wel- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  253 

come  information  that  the  boat  was  ready,  upon  which  the  direc- 
tor ordered  him  to  make  up  a  bed  for  me  on  board  if  I  wished  it, 
and  to  show  me  every  possible  attention,  adding,  that  I  was  his 
particular  friend  and  countryman.  I  now  thought  the  hour  of  my 
deliverance  was  arrived,  and  that  an  adventure  which  promised  so 
adversely  would  terminate  in  the  display  of  the  civilities  I  have 
enumerated ;  but  it  was  determined  that  my  correction  was  not 
yet  sufficient,  for  as  the  director  looked  out  of  the  window,  he  ex- 
claimed, "  here  comes  my  secretary?  a  very  steady  young  man, 
who  can  attend  to  the  office  for  the  day,"  and  then  turning  round 
to  me,  added,  "  and  I  can  now  have  the  happiness  of  going  half  a 
day's  journey  with  you,  which  I  am  resolved  to  do;  yes,  I  will  show 
to  you  how  dear  my  countrymen  are  to  me,  by  going  as  far  as  Bonn 
with  you."  Distressed  and  embarrassed  beyond  measure  at  this 
fresh  proof  of  his  provoking  and  perplexing  regard  for  America 
and  me,  I  tried  in  vain  to  prevail  upon  him  not  to  think  of  carrying 
his  politeness  so  far,  and  expressed  my  strong  sense  of  the  atten- 
tions with  which  he  had  already  comjiletely  overwhelmed  me :  all 
that  I  urged  appeared  only  to  redouble  the  warmth  of  his  expres- 
sions, and  to  confirm  him  in  his  determination. 

With  a  heavy  heart  and  a  light  countenance  we  walked  arm 
and  arm  down  to  the  shore,  and  ascended  the  boat,  over  which,  as 
well  as  all  the  other  Cologne  passage  beats,  it  appeared  he  had 
complete  sovereignty  by  virtue  of  his  office,  and  in  a  minute  after- 
wards the  towing  horse  advanced  at  a  rate  of  about  two  English 
miles  and  an  half  in  an  hour  on  the  French  side  of  the  river. 
The  director  made  me  sit  next  to  him  in  the  cabin,  telling  the 
passengers,  who  appeared  to  be  very  respectable,  that  I  was  an 
American  and  his  countryman,  and  that  that  was  the  happiest  day 
he  had  experienced  for  fifteen  years.  In  the  course  of  conversa- 
tion with  him,  from  the  gasconade  stories  which  he  related  of  his 
own  exploits,  I  was  induced  to  entertain  suspicions  of  his  charac- 
ter; he  told  me  that  he  was  one  of  the  most  conspicuous  charac- 
ters in  the  French  revolution;  that  General  Custine  owed  all  his 
glory  in  the  field  to  him;  that  he  had  long  resided  at  Berlin,  where 
he  had,  by  his  intrigues,  maintained  for  some  time  a  complete 


254  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

ascendency  in  the  Prussian  cabinet;  that  he  was  engaged  in  a  vast 
literary  work,  in  which  all  the  great  events  that  had  agitated  the 
world  for  the  last  ten  years,  would  be  unfolded  in  a  manner  never 
before  developed ;  that  he  had  entered  into  the  service  of  the 
French  Emperor,  solely  to  promote  the  interest  of  the  empire. 
He  observed,  after  engaging  my  word  to  keep  the  matter  secret 
until  I  reached  my  own  country,  that  the  Emperor  was  abhorred 
throughout  the  empire,  that  he  was  a  remorseless  tyrant,  and  that 
he  could  prove  him  to  be  a  coward. 

To  the  latter  part  of  his  assertion  I  took  care  to  offer  no  re- 
mark, but  under  the  pretence  of  wishing  to  view  the  city  of  Co- 
logne at  a  distance,  the  river  and  the  country,  and  also  to  gain  a 
little  respite  from  such  a  rapid  succession  of  untoward  circum- 
stances, I  ascended  the  top  of  the  cabin  and  refreshed  myself  by 
making  the  sketch  engraved.  The  tower,  the  mighty  mass  of  the 
unfinished  cathedral,  the  numerous  spires,  the  shores  on  either 
side,  the  rapid  motion  of  the  vessel  descending  the  Rhine,  the 
singing  of  those  on  board,  the  clear  brilliancy  of  the  sky,  afforded 
reanimating  delight  to  my  mind. 

About  ten  o'clock  my  persecutor  raised  his  head  through  the 
cabin  door,  to  announce  that  dinner  was  ready,  and  to  request  my 
company ;  upon  descending  I  found  some  soup,  and  beef  roasted 
after  the  German  fashion,  and  that  the  director  had,  while  I  was 
above,  been  taken  ill,  from  the  occasional  agitation  of  the  boat, 
that  to  allay  his  sickness  he  had  asked  one  of  the  gentlemen  on 
board  for  some  brandy,  and  of  which  he  had  evidently  taken  a 
great  deal  too  much :  the  spirit  rapidly  operated  upon  his  head, 
and  a  more  abominable  nuisance  in  the  shape  of  man  I  never  be- 
held :  incapable  of  sitting  at  table  with  such  a  miscreant,  I  resum- 
ed my  old  place  where  I  had  not  been  seated  long  before  I  heard 
him  abusing  all  the  passengers,  except  myself,  for  whom  he  again 
expressed  "  the  assurance  of  his  high  consideration,"  and  threat- 
ening to  order  them  all  to  be  thrown  overboard,  which  he  seemed 
to  be  perfectly  able  to  do  himself,  for  he  was  one  of  the  most  power- 
ful men  I  ever  beheld :  upon  which  they  relinquished  the  cabin  to 
himself,  and,  excepting  a  very  pretty  French  girl,  came  upon  deck. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  255 

Upon  hearing  her  scream  violently,  I  went  below  to  see  what  injtu* 
encehis  countryman  could  now  have  over  the  director:  as  I  was  hand- 
ing her  out  of  the  cabin,  he  forcibly  pulled  me  back,  closed  the 
door,  and  said,  in  a  manner  which  was  perfectly  intelligible, 
though  occasionally  interrupted  by  the  spasms  of  intoxication,  "  I 
know  you,  though  you  think  I  do  not;  you  are  no  American,  you 
are  an  Englishman,  and  a  son  of  Mr.  Erskine  the  orator;  you  are 
here  on  a  secret  mission,  and  your  life  is  in  my  hands,  but  I  will  not 
betray  you."  The  reply  I  made  was,  "  I  am  engaged  in  no  secret 
mission,  my  soul  would  revolt  at  it,  nor  can  I  be  the  son  of  my 
Lord  Erskine,  for  he  is  now  upon  the  ocean,  as  ambassador  from 
the  court  of  Great  Britain  to  my  country;"  to  which  I  added, 
"  that  it  was  in  vain  for  him  to  attempt  to  deceive  me  any  longer, 
for  I  was  satisfied,  by  his  observations  respecting  America,  that 
he  had  not  been  born  in  that  country :"  to  which,  to  my  no  little 
consternation,  he  replied,  "  No,  nor  have  I  ever  been  there,  I  am 
a  German  by  birth,  I  was  educated  by  an  Englishman  who  lived 
at  my  father's,  and  I  am  now  in  the  service  of  one  of  the  greatest 
heroes,  and  the  most  illustrious  of  men." 

I  know  not  whether  my  life  was  in  peril,  but  it  is  certain  my 
liberty  was,  and  to  preserve  it,  I  thought  that  something  should 
be  immediately  done ;  accordingly  I  ascended  the  top  of  the  ca- 
bin, where  all  the  passengers  were  assembled  in  a  state  of  consi- 
derable uneasiness,  from  one  of  whom  I  borrowed  a  bottle  of 
brandy  and  a  coffee-cup,  with  which  I  returned  to  the  director, 
and  insisted  upon  drinking  his  health  in  some  excellent  spirit, 
and  raising  my  hand  and  the  bottle  in  a  manner  which,  in  his 
state,  prevented  him  from  seeing  what  I  poured  out,  I  affected 
to  fill  and  drink  it  off ;  I  then  gave  him  a  bumper,  which  I  seve- 
ral times  repeated  in  a  similar  manner,  until  the  miscreant  drop- 
ped under  the  table,  where  he  continued  in  a  state  of  utter  insen- 
sibility, and  with  little  appearance  of  life,  until  we  arrived,  which 
we  did  in  about  six  hours,  at  Bonn,  when  he  was  taken  out  of  the 
vessel  by  some  men,  conveyed  to  a  house  near  the  banks  of  the 
river,  and,  thank  heaven !  I  saw  no  more  of  him,  but  proceeded 
with  the  rest  of  the  passengers  to  a  very  neat  inn  a  little  way  in 


256       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

the  city,  where  we  had  an  excellent  dinner  and  some  good  white 
Rhine  wine.  The  stream  of  the  Rhine  became  less  rapid  as  we 
approached  Bonn,  where  its  waters  are  shallower  than  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Cologne,  where  all  large  vessels  ship  their  cargoes 
which  are  destined  for  any  of  the  towns  higher  up,  into  craft  con- 
structed peculiarly  for  the  purpose,  and  which  draw  much  less  wa- 
ter. As  I  determined  to  sleep  at  Bonn,  I  had  a  favourable  opportu- 
nity of  seeing  this  beautiful  little  city,  which. enabled  the  former 
Electors  of  Cologne  to  display  their  taste  by  selecting  it  for  their  re- 
sidence. It  was  elegantly  and  justly  observed  by  a  French  lady  on 
board  of  the  boat  as  we  approached  the  city,  Voila  Bonne  I  c*est  une 
fielite  fierl&l  no  expression  could  describe  it  better;  when  I  made 
my  view  of  it,  the  dark  clouds  behind  it  set  off  the  pearl-like  appear- 
ance of  the  palace  and  buildings.  I  saw  no  spot  on  the  Rhine  in 
the  shape  of  a  town  with  which  I  was  so  much  delighted ;  it  con- 
sisted of  little  more  than  1000  houses  and  8000  inhabitants.  In 
the  neighbourhood  the  country  begins  to  undulate,  and  the  vines 
make  a  luxuriant  appearance.  The  wine  made  here  and  in  the 
adjacent  parts  is  tolerably  good;  that  which  grows  upon  the  black 
basalt  hills,  further  to  the  southward,  is  infinitely  preferable,  black 
being  a  powerful  agent  to  attract  and  retain  heat ;  hence  the  rents 
of  hills  are  rather  high.  So  powerful  is  this  colour  in  attracting 
and  retaining  the  heat,  that  a  very  intelligent  friend  of  mine,  who 
resided  for  some  time  in  China,  informed  me,  that  for  the  pur- 
pose of  ripening  their  fruits  as  early  as  possible,  the  Chinese 
gardeners  paint  their  garden  walls  black,  and  lately  in  some  parts 
of  England  this  plan  has  been  followed.  Everything  in  and  about 
the  city  bears  testimony  to  the  enlightened  liberality  and  refined 
taste  of  the  last  of  the  Electors  of  Cologne,  who  was  cordially  be- 
loved and  admired  by  all  classes  of  his  subjects.  The  building 
which  was  once  his  palace,  is  very  extensive;  it  stands  just  with- 
out the  city  upon  an  elevation  of  ground,  and  commands  a  most 
enchanting  prospect,  embracing  the  windings  of  the  majestic 
Rhine,  part  of  the  village  of  Poppledorff,  the  ci-devant  monastery 
of  Gruizberg  crowning  the  summit  of  a  hill,  and  at  a  distance  the 
Seven   Mountains,  clothed  with  vineyards,   and  the.  spires  of 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  257 

Coblentz.  This  beautiful  building  is  now  applied  to  government 
purposes ;  in  the  left  wing  towards  the  orange  garden,  which  is 
prettily  disposed,  the  French  Emperor  has  preserved  the  Lyceum 
for  instructing  boys  in  Latin,  Greek,  German,  French,  mathema- 
tics, and  philosophy :  the  professors  are  very  able  men,  and  the 
institution  is  in  a  flourishing  condition :  this  is  one  amongst  the 
many  noble  establishments  founded  by  the  last  Elector,  which  in 
his  reign  was  kept  in  another  quarter  of  the  city :  this  elegant 
pile  of  building,  which  is  now  stripped  of  all  its  valuable  orna- 
ments, was  raised  by  the  elector  Clement  Augustus  in  1777, 
upon  the  same  site  on  which  no  less  than  four  preceding  palaces 
had  fallen  victims  to  the  flames :  there  is  a  beautiful  walk  under 
a  quadruple  row  of  lime  trees,  which  leads  to  a  small  country 
palace :  this  walk  forms  the  fashionable  parade  of  the  city,  and 
was  graced  by  a  number  of  beautiful  and  elegantly  dressed  ladies. 
Some  very  pleasant  French  officers,  with  whom  I  was  walking  in 
this  place,  expressed  their  surprise  at  seeing  an  Englishman 
amongst  them,  and  I  was  obliged  to  find  refuge  again  in  my 
American  adoption. 

Through  a  beautiful  and  romantic  country,  by  a  short  walk  a 
little  beyond  Gruizberg,  towards  the  south,  is  the  picturesque 
hill  of  Godesberg,  or  Godshill,  so  called  from  a  sanative  mineral 
spring  flowing  close  to  it,  which  contains  fixed  air,  iron,  magnesia, 
and  salt:  the  last  Elector  who  never  omitted  anything  which 
could  add  to  the  comfort  and  happiness  of  his  people,  erected  an 
assembly  and  other  rooms,  and  also  pleasure  gardens  for  recrea- 
tion close  to  the  spring,  and  by  some  very  wise  regulations,  en- 
couraged the  building  of  lodging  houses.  At  this  place,  many  of 
the  unhappy  French  emigrants,  after  the  revolution,  found  a  little 
relief  from  the  miserable  recollections  of  their  fallen  fortunes  and 
altered  fate :  the  court  of  the  prince  bishop  was  remarkable  for 
the  elegance,  hospitality,  and  refined  freedom  which  reigned 
throughout  it,  and  in  return  in  every  visitor  he  beheld  a  friend. 
The  inilu#ce  of  this  scene  of  courtly  felicity  upon  the  manners 
of  the  people  had  not  as  yet  subsided.  A  peculiar  air  of  refine- 
ment distinguished  the  deportment  of  the  inhabitants:  after  an  cx- 

2K 


258  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

quisite  ramble,  I  returned  through  the  square,  a  spacious  irregu- 
lar area,  where  the  French  troops  quartered  in  the  place  were  ex- 
ercising, and  where  a  very  ancient  Gothic  town-house  stands,  to 
supper  at  my  hotel,  at  the  table  d'hote  of  which  I  again  smarted 
for  the  temerity  of  trespassing  upon  this  delightful  spot.  During 
our  repast,  which  abounded  with  a  great  variety  of  choice  and  ex- 
cellent dishes,  and  which  was  attended  by  many  French  officers,  a 
German  lady  who  sat  opposite  to  me,  always  addressed  and  alluded 
to  me  by  the  perilous  name  of" Monsieur  Anglois"  which  excited 
some  considerable  attention  amongst  the  company  towards  me; 
at  last  a  French  officer  whose  physiognomy  did  not  present  the 
most  pleasing  collection  of  features,  rose  up,  eyed  me  all  over, 
and  went  out:  I  expected  nothing  less  than  being  obliged  to  take 
shelter  once  more  under  my  American  alliance,  but  after  waiting 
in  the  room  an  hour,  I  saw  nothing  more  of  him,  and  went  to  bed. 
Whilst  a  cruel  and  savage  state  of  hostility  between  man  and  man 
thus  embarrassed  the  progress  of  a  traveller,  whose  only  object 
was  to  contemplate  the  beautiful  face  of  nature,  never  did  the  di- 
vine object  of  his  pursuit  appear  more  arrayed  in  the  smiles  of 
peace  and  loveliness.  The  government  of  Bonn,  as  well  as  Cologne, 
and  all  the  other  cities  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Rhine  is  vested  in 
a  governor  appointed  by  Napoleon,  and  is  purely  military.  Under 
a  clear  and  cloudless  sky  I  bade  adieu  to  Bonn  with  great  re- 
luctance, and  embarked  on  board  of  the  passage-boat  bound  to 
Cassel.  As  we  passed  the  lofty  towers  of  PlittersdorfT,  on  our 
right,  the  Rhine  unfolded  itself  in  all  its  glory.  On  our  left  the 
seven  mountains  (Sieben  Geburge)  called  the  Drakenfels,  Wol- 
kenbourg  Rolandsekke,  Lowenburgh,  Nonnenstromberg,  Hoke 
Ochlbey,  and  Hemmerick,  arose  with  uncommon  grandeur, 
crowned  with  convents  and  the  venerable  ruins  of  castles.  In  dis- 
tant ages,  many  a  German  baron  bold  resided  in  rude  dignity  with 
his  martial  followers,  upon  the  summit  of  these  mountains,  from 
whence  they  waged  war  against  each  other,  and  many  of  their  re- 
mains of  antiquity  are  the  work  of  Valentinian  in  thetfourth  cen- 
tury, who  overthrew  the  Germans,  and  who  fell  a  victim  to  his 
inordinate  passion,  for  when  the  Quadi  sent  to  him  to  make  a 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  259 

peace,  the  awkward  appearance  of  some  of  the  ambassadors  so 
enraged  him,  that  in  his  anger  he  burst  an  artery. 

Drackensels  has  infinitely  the  advantage  of, situation;  it  rises 
perpendicularly  from  the  river  to  a  stupendous  height,  crowned 
with  the  roofless  remains  of  an  ancient  castle,  brown  with  anti- 
quity; midway  it  is  covered  with  luxuriant  vines,  whilst  all  above 
is  red  and  gray  rock.  The  other  mountains,  which  recede  to  a 
great  distance,  appeared  to  be  clothed  with  the  clustering  grape, 
on  the  opposite  side  the  vineyards,  sloping  close  to  the  water's 
edge,  extended  as  far  as  they  could  reach  ;  every  where  the  ge- 
nius of  this  terrestrial  Paradise  seemed  as  if  with  tasteful  finger 
he  had 


led  the  vine 


To  wed  her  elm she  spoused  about  him  twines 

Her  marriageable  arms!  and  with  her  brings 

Her  dower,  the  adopted  clusters,  to  adorn 

Her  barren  leaves.  Milton. 

As  we  advanced,  a  beautiful  island  in  the  centre  of  the  river, 
covered  with  poplars,  walnut  trees  and  elms,  from  the  bosom  of 
which  arose  the  roof  and  belfry  of  the  monastery  of  Nonen 
Werth,  or  Worthy  Nuns,  formed  the  back  scene :  the  bosom  of 
the  river  was  enlivened  with  the  peasants  of  the  neighbourhood 
moving  in  boats  worked  and  steered  with  paddles,  and  the  banks 
of  the  French  territory  with  groups  of  French  soldiers  bathing, 
and  singing  their  national  songs.       # 

As  we  passed  the  monastery  the  matin  bells  rung,  and  gave  a 
romantic  interest  to  the  scene:  this  pious  seclusion  is  included 
in  the  French  line  of  sovereignty,  and  was  condemned  by  Bona- 
parte to  change  its  owners  and  its  nature  for  ever,  but  at  the  ear- 
nest intercession  of  the  Empress  Josephine,  he  consented  to  suf- 
fer the  sisterhood  to  enjoy  it  during  their  lives,  after  which  it  will 
devolve  to  the  empire.  Wherever  power  could  effect  and  policy 
justify  the  measure,  Bonaparte  has  displayed  his  decided  hosti- 
lity to  monastic  establishments  of  every  description ;  he  considers 
them  as  so  many  sinks  of  sloth,  in  which  all  the  noble  principles 


260  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

and  purposes  of  life  become  stagnant.  In  Paris  only  one  convent,  that 
of  the  Blue  Nuns,  is  permitted  to  remain.  The  numerous  convents 
which  adorn  the  French  side  of  the  Rhine  with  the  most  pictu- 
resque appearance,  are  either  converted  into  fabrics,  or  suffered  to 
run  to  dilapidation:  the  river,  from  its  nxeanderings,  is  land-locked  all 
the  way,  every  turning  of  which  surprised  and  captivated  me  with 
some  new  beauty.  Here,  behind  a  line  of  walnut,  lime  and  beech 
trees,  just  skirting  the  margin  of  the  river,  a  stupendous  pyra- 
midal cliff  appears,  with  every  projection  upon  which  the  cultiva- 
tor could  lodge  a  layer  of  vegetable  mould,  supporting  a  little 
growth  of  vine:  there,  mountains  of  vineyards,  relieved  by  moul- 
dering castles,  and  convents  rising  from  masses  of  rock  shooting 
forwards,  or  piercing  the  sky  from  their  pointed  pinnacles,  arrest 
the  attention.  Sometimes  a  torrent  brightens  before  the  beholder, 
and  distantly  roars  upon  the  ear;  at  others  the  naked  bed  of  one 
appears,  or  a  rude  gap  through  which  the  eye  penetrates  into 
ranges  of  other  vine-clad  mountains,  variegated  with  majestic 
ruins,  is  seen.  At  the  base  of  the  hills  on  the  sides  of  the  river 
numerous  towers  and  villages  constantly  appear,  defended  by  an- 
cient walls  and  turrets,  adorned  with  venerable  churches,  brown 
with  age,  surmounted  with  lofty  spires,  every  where  inviting  the 
reflection  of  the  moralist,  the  investigation  of  the  antiquary,  the 
song  of  the  poet,  and  the  pencil  of  the  painter. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  261 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 


BASALT  MOUNTAINS ANDERNACH ANECDOTE  OF  GENERAL 

HOCHE RHENISH  FLOATS SINGULAR  ACCIDENT FRENCH 

POLICE NEUWEID THE  RHINE  BOAT TOMB  OF  GENERAL 

MARCEAU ANECDOTE  OF  FRENCH  HEROISM.. ...COBLENTZ 

ITS  SURRENDER  TO  THE  FRENCH  ARMS ANEDOTE  OF  FRENCH 

VIVACITY THE  ROCK  AND  FORTRESS  OF  EHRENBREITSTEIN 

THE  GRIFFON STUPENDOUS  FRENCH  ROADS BOPPART. 

ALMOST  all  the  immense  mass  of  mountains  which  extend 
from  Bonn  to  Andernach,  is  composed  of  the  basalt  and  slate  ;  the 
former  has  a  more  artificial  appearance  than  almost  any  other  mi- 
neral production.  In  no  form  can  it  puzzle  the  philosopher  more 
than  at  the  Giant's  Causeway,  in  Ireland,  where  it  assumes  a 
columnar  shape,  which  has  every  appearance  of  having  been 
chisseled  by  the  hand  of  a  skilful  mason,  and  of  having-  been  re- 
gular granite  cooling  after  fusion,  and  formed  into  regular  masses 
by  crystallization.  In  the  small  cavities  of  these  mountains  the 
martins  and  swallows  find  refuge,  and  in  a  comfortable  state  of 
torpidity  pass  through  the  cold  and  cheerless  weather  of  winter. 
The  children  of  the  peasantry  amuse  themselves  in  discovering 
their  retreats,  at  an  apparent  exposure  of  their  own  lives. 

In  an  amphitheatre  of  vast  dusky  basalt  mountains,  the  sombre 
gates,  towers  and  pinnacles  of  Andernach  appeared :  in  conse- 
quence of  the  river  making  a  long  sweep,  I  landed  with  an  inten- 
tion of  rejoining  the  boat  at  a  village  named  by  the  skipper;  a 
more  solemn  scene  of  gloom  and  grandeur,  I  never  contemplated: 
the  ruins  of  this  town  towards  Coblentz  are  of  great  antiquity. 
The  inhabitants  insist  upon  it,  that  the  remains  of  the  Emperor 


262  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

Valentine  are  deposited  in  one  of  their  churches,  and  that  Julius 
Csesar  when  he  so  victoriously  fought  against  the  Suabians, 
passed  over  the  Rhine  at  this  spot,  where  Drusus  the  general  of 
Augustus,  built  one  of  those  fifty  castles  which  are  erected  on  the 
banks  of  the  Rhine :  but  the  French,  who  narrowly  investigated 
every  part  of  the  river  which  their  victorious  arms  enabled  them  to 
visit,  with  great  acuteness,  and  with  the  assistance  of  history,  believe 
that  this  celebrated  landing  was  effected  a  little  higher  up  the  river, 
a  short  distance  from  Engers,  at  a  place  called  the  White  Tower 
(der  Weisse  Thurm),  the  venerable  front  of  which  I  saw  as  I  af- 
terwards advanced  on  our  right,  in  the  centre  of  a  sudden  recess 
of  the  river,  where  it  has  the  appearance  of  having^  served  the 
united  purposes  of  a  castle  and  a  watch-tower;  at  its  Ifase  is  a  con- 
siderable village,  which  formerly  belonged  to  the  Elector  of 
Treves:  this  situation  is  from  a  combination  of  local  advantages, 
peculiarly  favorable  to  the  completion  of  such  a  passage,  and  in 
confirmation  of  the  opinion,  a  great  number  of  Roman  antiquities 
have  been  found  there.  General  Hoche,  at  the  head  of  an  im- 
mense army,  aided  by  the  obscurity  of  the  night,  crossed  the 
Rhine  at  this  place  in  1797,  and  astonished  the  imperial  troops 
the  next  morning  by  their  presence. 

This  was  the  last  exploit  of  that  general.  Near  this  tower 
there  are  deposited  his  remains,  over  which  a  mausoleum  has 
been  erected.  This  young  commander  died  of  an  enlargement  of 
the  heart  at  Wetzlar.  His  funeral  was  conducted  with  uncommon 
military  pomp.  The  procession  moved  from  the  place  where  he 
died,  across  the  Rhine  to  the  White  Tower,  amidst  the  discharge 
of  cannon,  which  were  fired  every  quarter  of  an  hour. 

The  trade  of  the  Rhine  is  here  very  flourishing,  for  exclusive 
of  the  neighbouring  vineyards  which  produce  fine  wines,  and  the 
basalts  of  the  adjoining  mountains  used  for  building  and  paving, 
this  city  derives  considerable  wealth  from  the  lapis  tophaceus  or 
tuf  stone,  the  harder  sort  of  which  form  excellent  millstones ; 
vast  quantities  are  shipped  for  Holland,  to  construct  or  repair  its 
dykes  with,  and  the  more  friable  is  used  for  building,  whilst  its 
powder  mixed  with  lime  forms  the  hardest  and  most  durable  ce- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  263 

jnent.  I  saw  the  cabins  of  several  treckschuyts  in  Holland  cover- 
ed with  it,  which  were  perfectly  impervious  to  the  rain:  the  Ger- 
mans also  use  it  to  floor  their  houses  with.  This  stone  is  con- 
sidered to  be  a  species  of  the  pumice-stone,  or  imperfect  lava, 
and  of  volcanic  production. 

On  the  banks  leading  to  this  city,  I  saw  part  of  one  of  those 
amazing  floats  of  timber  which  are  formed  of  lesser  ones,  convey- 
ed to  this  city  from  the  forests  adjoining  the  Rhine,  the  Moselle, 
the  Maine,  &c. ;  these  floats  are  attached  to  each  other,  and  form 
a  platform  generally  of  the  enormous  dimensions  of  eight  hundred 
feet  in  length,  and  one  hundred  and  sixty  in  breadth,  upon  which 
a  little  village  containing  about  eighty  wooden  houses  is  erected 
for  the  accommodation  of  those  who  are  interested  in,  and  assist 
in  navigating  this  stupendous  raft,  frequently  amounting  to  seven 
and  eight  hundred  persons,  men,  women,  and  children ;  besides 
these  buildings,  there  are  stalls  for  cattle,  slaughtering  houses, 
and  magazines  for  provisions :  the  float  is  prevented  from  striking 
against  the  shores,  where  the  turnings  are  abrupt,  by  the  applica- 
tion of  thirty  or  forty  anchors,  which  with  the  necessary  cables 
are  conveyed  in  fourteen  or  fifteen  boats  which  precede  it,  and  its 
course  is  safely  directed  by  German  and  Dutch  pilots,  who  are 
hired  for  the  purpose. 

After  great  rains  when  the  current  is  rapid,  the  whole  is  en- 
trusted to  its  propelling  force,  otherwise  several  hundred  persons 
are  employed  in  rowing,  who  move  there  oars  at  a  given  word  of 
command.  The  whole  of  these  wonderful  moving  masses  is  under 
the  entire  direction  of  a  governor  or  superintendant,  and  several 
officers  under  him.  Sometimes  they  are  months  in  performing 
their  voyage,  in  consequence  of  the  water  being  low,  in  which 
case  they  are  obliged  to  wait  till  the  river  is  swelled  by  the  rains. 
In  this  manner  they  float  from  the  high  to  the  low  countries,  and 
upon  their  arrival  at  the  place  of  destination,  the  whole  is  broken 
up,  and  finds  a  ready  market.  About  twelve  of  them  annually  ar- 
rive at  Dort,  in  Holland,  in  the  months  of  July  and  August,  where 
these  German  timber-merchants  having  converted  their  floats  into 


264  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

good  Dutch  ducats,  return  to  their  own  country  with  their  fami- 
lies, to  enjoy  the  produce  of  their  labour  and  enterprize. 

The  clergy  and  monks  in  Andernach  used  to  be,  to  use  a 
good-humoured  homely  expression  of  a  late  illustrious  statesman, 
upon  an  application  made  to  him  for  a  place  under  his  adminis- 
tration "  as  thick  as  five  in  a  bed ;"  beside  six  vicars  belonging  to 
a  large  parish  church,  there  were  no  less  than  five  crowded  con- 
vents, and  the  population  did  not  exceed  four  thousand  souls:  the 
convents  are  now  converted  into  garrisons  for  French  soldiers, 
and  storehouses  for  tradesmen.  After  viewing  the  city,  I  set  off 
on  the  road  to  Coblentz,  with  a  view  of  meeting  the  boat  at  the 
place  appointed,  and  after  walking  about  two  miles,  I  lost  all  tra- 
ces of  the  river;  however,  observing  about  three  parts  of  a  mile  off, 
the  tops  of  a  long  semicircular  line  of  poplars,  I  concluded  the 
river  flowed  by  them,  and  I  accordingly  endeavoured  to  penetrate 
to  the  bank  through  a  large  willow  wood,  in  which  I  soon  lost  my- 
self. At  last,  however,  I  succeeded  in  forcing  a  way  into  a  little 
footpath,  in  pursuing  which  I  suddenly  came  upon  a  Frenchman, 
poorly  clothed  in  green,  with  a  book  in  his  hand ;  he  courteously 
addressed  me,  remarked  that  I  looked  rather  warm,  and  conduc- 
ted me  to  a  recess  in  the  wood,  close  to  the  water,  where  there 
was  a  bed  of  straw  and  a  gun :  at  first  I  regarded  him  as  a  robber, 
but  he  soon  gave  me  to  understand  that  he  was  a  link  in  a  vast 
chain,  composed  of  forty  thousand  soldiers,  placed  in  this  sort  of 
ambuscade  at  the  distance  of  a  gun  shot  from  each  other,  by  the 
orders  of  the  government  of  France,  to  guard  the  left  bank  of  the 
Rhine  from  smugglers ;  and  that  to  prevent  contraband  practices, 
no  boat  is  suffered  to  pass  either  up  or  down  the  river  after  sun- 
set, without  being  fired  upon  ;  that  they  are  always  clothed  in  a 
sombre  dress,  to  prevent  observation,  and  are  concealed  in  this 
manner  wherever  the  sides  of  the  river  will  admit  of  it.  Upon 
my  informing  him  that  I  had  lost  my  way  and  my  boat,  he  polite- 
ly assured  me  that  it  had  not  yet  ascended  the  river,  and  hailed  a 
little  punt  passing  by,  which  enabled  me  to  regain  the  vessel,  then 
very  fortunately  just  approaching.  Notwithstanding  the  vigilance- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  265 

of  the  French  police,  the  rafts  I  have  described  carry  on  a  consi- 
derable contraband  trade  in  the  Rhine  wines  and  Seltzer  water. 

Opposite  to  the  spot  where  this  occurrence  took  place,  at  the 
bottom  of  a  range  of  hills,  is  the  delightful  town  and  palace  of 
Neuwied,  built  of  white  stone,  at  one  end  of  the  line  of  poplars 
which  I  have  mentioned,  and  almost  the  only  town  I  saw  without 
walls  or  any  sort  of  fortification  on  the  Rhine.  Nothing  could  ex- 
ceed the  air  of  happiness  and  prosperity  which  seemed  to  reign  in 
this  delectable  little  capital,  which  looked  perfectly  fresh  and  new, 
the  prince  of  which  receives,  because  he  deserves,  the  affections 
of  his  subjects;  every  one  on  board,  with  great  vivacity,  spoke  of 
the  toleration,  the  liberal  extension  of  the  rights  of  citizenship  to 
foreigners,  and  the  public  spirit  of  its  ruler.  The  place  is  enrich- 
ed by  several  flourishing  iron  works,  steel,  paper,  and  cotton 
manufactures  (the  latter,  the  first  introduced  into  Germany), 
printing,  watch,  and  ingenious  cabinet-making.  Before  the  last 
war,  in  the  forges  and  founderies,  and  different  fabrics,  not  less 
than  four  thousand  persons  were  employed,  and  their  circulation 
at  a  fair  has  been  known  to  amount  to  forty  or  fifty  thousand  flo- 
rins. There  is  an  establishment  of  Moravian  brethren  here  more 
numerous  than  that  at  Zeyst.  The  last  and  the  present  wars  have 
of  course  considerably  reduced  the  number  of  workmen,  by  forc- 
ing many  of  them  into  the  army  ;  but,  notwithstanding,  there  is 
no  town  on  the  Rhine  in  a  more  enviable  condition,  for  every 
thing  which  can  impart  content  and  felicity  to  man.  It  was  a  curi- 
ous and  highly  interesting  circumstance  to  see  in  Neuwied  and 
Andernach,  almost  opposite  to  each  other,  the  most  modern  and 
the  most  ancient  city  on  the  Rhine.  The  price  of  freight  upon 
the  Rhine  is  rather  high :  before  the  French  united  together  so 
many  petty  sovereignties  it  was  much  higher,  owing  to  the  num- 
ber of  tolls  which  were  paid  to  each;  previous  to  that  event  there 
were  no  less  than  twelve  tolls  to  discharge  between  Cologne  and 
Amsterdam. 

We  had  a  very  good  table  d'hote  on  board,  at  a  moderate 

price,  abundance  of  Rhine  crabs,  excellent  grapes,  and  a  variety 

of  other  fruits,  which,  as  well  as  the  most  delicious  bread  I  ever 

2L 


266  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

tasted,  we  purchased  at  the  different  towns  where  we  stopped.  I 
had  the  comfort  of  being  attended  by  an  intelligent,  animated  fel- 
low, who  had  been  in  the  sen  ice  of  the  immortal  Nelson  on  board 
of  one  of  the  ships  which  he  commanded,  and  afterwards  with  the 
English  army  in  Egypt,  who  offered  his  services  on  board  the 
boat  at  a  very  reasonable  rate.  The  richness,  novelty,  and  majesty 
of  the  scenery,  kept  me  constantly  on  the  roof  of  the  cabin,  from 
the  early  hour  of  starting  till  the  hour  of  nine  at  night,  when,  for 
the  reason  stated,  we  always  stopped  at  some  town  or  village  till 
morning.  In  these  stoppages  we  entirely  depended  upon  the  vari- 
able velocity  of  the  current,  not  to  say  a  word  of  the  caprice  of 
our  skipper,  or  the  influence  which  the  residence  of  any  particular 
favourite  or  friend  might  have  upon  him;  the  consequence  of 
which  was,  that  we  arrived  at  places  to  sup  and  sleep  where  we  were 
not  expected,  and  of  course  our  patience  was  put  to  a  little,  but 
never  a  considerable  trial.  Within  three  or  four  miles  of  Cob- 
lentz,  on  our  right  in  ascending  the  river,  we  passed  a  pyramidical 
mausoleum,  erected  to  the  memory  of  the  French  general  Mar- 
ceau,  who  distinguished  himself  at  the  battle  of  Mons  and  Save- 
nai,  and  died  of  the  wounds  which  he  received  at  the  battle  of  Al- 
tenkirchen  in  1796. 

At  Bendorf,  a  romantic  village  on  our  left,  upon  a  branch  of  the 
river,  a  terrible  battle  was  fought  between  the  French  army,  com- 
manded by  Gen.  Hoche,  and  the  Austrians,  after  the  former  had  ef- 
fected the  passage  I  have  before  mentioned,  from  the  white  tower, 
which,  after  a  tremendous  slaughter  on  both  sides,  terminated  in 
the  retreat  of  the  imperial  troops.  In  this  battle  an  extraordi- 
nary instance  of  prowess  and  enthusiasm  occurred,  which  is  said 
to  have  decided  the  fate  of  the  day :  the  French  had  frequently 
attacked  an  Austrian  redoubt,  the  possession  of  which  was  of 
great  consequence  to  them,  and  had  as  often  been  repulsed  with 
great  carnage  ;  at  last  a  French  general  rode  up  to  the  granadiers 
commanded  by  Captain  Gros,  and  exclaimed,  "  Soldiers,  swear 
to  me  that  you  will  make  yourselves  masters  of  that  redoubt." 
"  We  swear,"  replied  Gros,  holding  up  his  hand,  and  his  soldiers 
doing  the  same :  they  returned  to  the  attack  with  redouble  fury,. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  267 

and  the  havoc  became  dreadful :  the  French  troops  were  upcn  the 
point  of  again  giving  way,  when  their  leader  had  his  right  arm 
crushed  by  a  grape  shot,  upon  which,  with  a  smile  of  triumph, 
he  grasped  his  sabre  with  his  left,  rahied  his  men  and  cariied  the 
redoubt.  As  we  turned  a  considerable  meander  of  the  liver  by 
XeuendoriT,  one  of  the  grandest  spectacles  I  almost  e\er  contem- 
plated opened  upon  me :  the  mighty  rock  of  Ehrenbreitstein, 
formerly  called  the  Gibraltar  of  the  Rhine,  with  its  dismantled 
batteries  and  ruined  castles,  rose  A^ith  awful  and  unexampled 
majesty  on  the  south;  at  its  base  was  the  palace  formerly  belong- 
ing to  the  Elector  of  Treves,  and  the  town  bearing  the  name  of 
this  wonderful  fortification;  and  immediately  opposite  to  it,  as 
we  advanced  a  little  farther,  the  beautiful  city  of  Ccblentz  ap- 
peared. Here  we  were  obliged  to  be  separated  from  our  horse, 
on  account  of  the  Moselle,  which  discharges  itself  into  the  Rhine 
at  this  place,  the  mouth  of  which  we  crossed  by  the  assistance  of 
our  boatmens'  poles.  Over  this  river  there  is  a  handsome  stone 
bridge  of  many  arches,  and  formerly  there  was  a  bridge  of  boats 
from  this  city  to  Ehrenbreitstein,  which  has  been  most  judiciously 
removed,  and  succeeded  by  one  of  the  flying  bridges  before  des- 
cribed, by  which  a  more  convenient  communication  is  kept  com- 
pletely open,  and  the  navigation  is  not  impeded.  Coblentz  is  a 
very  ancient  city  ;  it  was  the  seat  of  the  Roman  emperors,  and  of 
the  kings  of  the  Franks,  and  a  favourite  residence  of  the  arch- 
bishops and  electors  of  Treves,  who,  in  ancient  times  of  broil  and 
peril,  resided  in  the  castle  which  crowns  the  majestic  rock  oppo- 
site to  the  city.  Before  the  revolution  there  were  three  parish 
churches,  two  colleges,  a  church  belonging  to  the  Jesuits,  four 
convents  of  monks,  dominicans,  carmelites,  franciscans,  and  capu- 
chins, and  three  nunneries.  At  that  period  the  population  of  the 
inhabitants,  of  the  garrison,  and  the  vale  of  Ehrenbreitstein,  was 
calculated  at  13.,000  souls  ;  at  present  it  is  not  supposed  to  exceed 
nine  thousand.  The  city  has  many  good  and  some  handsome 
buildings,  and  it  is  further  recommended  by  its  supplies  of  excel- 
lent mines,  pit-coal,  wood,  and  lime.  Its  best  square  is  the  Cle- 
menstadt;  there  are  several  handsome  hotels,  of  which  the  au  • 


268  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

cient  hotel,  the  vast  rock  which  formerly  protected  it,  and  the 
antiquity  of  its  buildings,  cast  a  gloomy  grandeur  over  the  whole 
place,  which  never  exhibited  so  much  gaiety  as  in  the  winter  of 
1791,  when  the  French  princes  and  their  followers  were  nobly 
entertained  and  protected  here  by  the  Elector,  before  they  march- 
ed to  Champagne,  to  experience  those  disasters  which  finally  con- 
firmed the  overthrow  of  their  devoted  house. 

Coblentz  derives  its  name  by  not  a  little  meander  of  etymo- 
logy, from  the  confluence  of  the  Rhine  and  the  Moselle  at  its 
base.  Ausonius,  one  of  the  most  celebrated  of  the  Latin  poets  of 
the  fourth  century,  wrote  five  hundred  verses  in  commemoration 
of  this  river,  which,  compared  with  the  majesty  of  the  river  into 
which  it  rolls  and  is  lost,  is  scarcely  worthy  of  such  an  honour:  the 
view  from  its  banks  is  also  in  an  equal  degree  of  comparative  in- 
feriority, and  by  the  unceasing  agitation  of  its  confluence,  it  has 
the  reputation  of  having  alarmed  the  tender  nerves  of  the  river- 
fish,  of  which  the  inhabitants  of  this  city  are  not  so  well  supplied 
as  the  neighbouring  towns. 

One  of  the  most  beautiful  objects  in  this  place  is  the  new  pa- 
lace, built  to  the  south  of  the  city,  close  to  the  Rhine,  by  that 
splendid  and  amiable  prince,  the  Elector  Clement  Vencelas;  it  is 
of  brick  stuccoed,  to  resemble  stone,  has  a  noble  Ionic  portico, 
and  including  its  wings,  extends  one  hundred  and  eighty  yards. 
A  further  description  of  its  exterior,  as  I  have  made  a  drawing  of 
it,  and  more -over  as  it  is  now  converted  into  an  hospitable,  were 
useless.  Its  grand  stair-case,  its  apartments  consistirr;  of  a  chapel, 
an  audience-hall,  concert-room,  library,  cabinet,  dining-room,  be- 
sides an  immense  number  of  other  rooms,  excited  the  admiration 
of  every  visitor,  by  their  magnitude,  magnificence,  or  elegance. 
Its  furniture,  its  mantle-pieces,  its  tapestry,  and  inlaid  floors,  all 
corresponded  in  taste  and  splendor  with  the  rest  of  the  building ; 
now  not  a  vestige  of  its  consequence  or  original  destination  re- 
mains, but  what  its  walls  display.  Most  of  the  windows  are  bro- 
ken, stuffed  with  hay,  or  further  disfigured  by  having  linen  hang- 
ing out  to  dry  from  them  ;  the  area  before  the  grand  front,  which 
was  formed  into  an  elegant  promenade,  is  now  broken,  and  its 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.       269 

graceful  plantation  totally  destroyed.  A  little  way  further  to  the 
southward,  on  the  opposite  side,  under  the  impending  rocks  of 
Ehrenbreitstein,  is  the  old  palace,  a  sombre  building,  which  the 
Elector  Clement  quitted  almost  entirely  on  account  of  its  gloom, 
and  the  humidity  of  its  situation, 

The  Elector  of  Treves  excited  the  indignation  of  the  French 
against  him  very  early  in  the  French  revolution,  by  encouraging 
the  expatriated  French  princes  to  reside  and  hold  their  counter- 
revolutionary councils  at  Cobientz.  In  September,  1794,  General 
Jourdan,  with  his  accustomed  energy,  compelled  the  Austrians 
to  retreat  to  Herve,  and  afterwards  to  Aix  la  Chapelie,  when,  sup- 
ported by  the  main  body  of  the  army,  the  French  attacked  all  the 
enemy's  posts  from  Ruremonde  to  Juliers:  at  this  eventful  period, 
General  Clairfayt  having  occupied  a  strong  position  upon  the 
Roer,  resisted  the  French  for  some  time,  but  their  ardor  and 
numbers  at  length  compelled  the  Austrians  to  retire  into  Ger- 
many, leaving  behind  them  ten  thousand  of  their  comrades,  killed 
or  taken  prisoners,  in  the  short  space  of  three  days;  and  soon  af- 
terwards a  detachment  of  the  French  army,  under  the  command 
of  General  Moreau,  entered  Cobientz  as  victors,  Cologne  being 
already  in  their  possession,  and  Mainz,  or  Mayence,  the  only  city 
in  the  possession  of  the  allies  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Rhine. 

I  was  informed  by  some  French  officers  who  were  in  the  boat 
Math  me,  that  the  society  in  Cobient#  was  very  elegant ;  that  a 
number  of  families  lived  in  splendor ;  and  also,  that  Bonaparte 
had  continued  with  some  modifications  the  colleges,  and  most  of 
the  public  institutions,  which  the  Electors  of  Treves  had  at  various 
times  established  in  that  city.  The  vast  and  celebrated  monas- 
tery, called  in  German  Karthaus,  or  La  Chartreuse,  situated  on  a 
high  mountain,  in  the  neighbourhood  to  the  west  of  Cobientz, 
from  which  the  countries  of  Treves,  Mayence,  Cologne,  Darm- 
stadt, d'Anspach,  and  Wied,  may  be  seen,  is  converted  into  an 
observatory,  and  a  place  of  very  agreeable  recreation. 

Upon  my  return,  in  descending  the  Rhine,  I  had  an  opportu- 
nity of  more  closely  seeing  Ehrenbreitstein,  which  I  was  enabled 
to  do  from  the  following  circumstance  :  the  Rhine  schuyt  was 


270       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

uncommonly  crowded,  and  late  in  the  evening  we  arrived  at  a 
hamlet  on  the  right  bank  of  the  river  to  sleep :  the  house  in  which 
we  were  to  pass  the  night  Avas  not  able  to  furnish  beds  more  than 
barely  sufficient  for  the  ladies  on  board,  which  at  once  determined 
a  French  officer,  one  of  the  party,  who  had  not  placed  his  head  upon 
a  pillow  for  three  preceding  nights,  and  who  was  a  wretched  in- 
valid, apparently  in  the  last  stage  of  a  decline,  to  hunt  amongst 
the  cottagers  for  a  fidler,  to  whose  miserable  sounds  this  epitome 
of  his  nation,  with  several  other  officers  and  petty  German  mer- 
chants, danced  till  the  dawn  of  day,  p.our  passer  Ic  terns,  and  the 
boat  was  ready  to  proceed.  Having  found  by  moon-light  a  nook 
in  a  peasant's  nest,  in  the  most  romantic  situation  under  heaven, 
I  lay  down,  and  never  awoke  till  an  hour  after  the  boat  had  departed, 
in  which  dilemma  I  was  obliged  to  hire  a  punt  with  two  paddles,  and 
by  the  assistance  of  a  couple  of  sturdy  peasants  overtook  the  passage- 
boat,  which  lay  off  Coblentz,  during  which  I  visited  Ehrenbreitstein. 
At  its  base  there  is  a  pretty  town  and  an  excellent  hotel;  opposite 
to  the  palace  is  a  walk  of  limes,  close  to  which  was  moored  the 
electoral  state  yacht,  or  barge,  in  shape  and  size  resembling  our 
Lord  Mayor's,  but  not  quite  so  gaudy.  The  ascent  to  this  stupen- 
dous rock,  which  is  eight  hundred  feet  in  a  perpendicular  line 
above  the  level  of  the  river,  is  by  a  very  narrow,  steep,  and  wind- 
ing path:  the  noble  fortification  on  its  sides,  and  the  castles,  ar- 
senals, barracks,  and  battyies  upon  its  summit,  from  whence 
the  eye  can  behold  the  mountains  of  Lorraine,  the  meanders  of 
the  Rhine,  and  the  countries  through  which  it  flows  to  a  vast 
distance,  and  from  which  the  beholder  might  almost  think  he 
could  step  into  the  clouds,  are  all  roofless  and  dismantled.  The 
citadel  was  erected  by  the  order  of  the  Prince  Bishop  Herman 
Hillinus,  in  the  12th  century,  upon  the  ruins  of  an  ancient  Roman 
building. 

In  the  centre  of  the  square,  or  parade  upon  the  top,  was  for- 
merly mounted  the  celebrated  cannon,  called  "  the  Griffon,"  as 
well  known  to  the  Germans  as  that  called  "  Queen  Anne's  pocket- 
piece"  is  to  the  English.  The  former  merits  the  national  pride 
which  it  has  excited.   It  was  cast  at  Francfort  bv  the  order  of  the 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  271 

Elector,  Richard  Greifenklau,  weighed  thirty  thousand  pounds, 
and  was  capable  of  projecting  a  ball  of  one  hundred  and 
eighty  pounds,  to  a  distance  of  sixteen  miles.  Close  to  the  touch- 
hole  there  was  the  following  inscription :  "  Vogel  Grief  heis  ich, 
meinem  gnadigen  herrn  von  Trier  dien  ich,  wo  er  mich  heist 
gewanten,  da  will  ich  Thoren  und  mauren  Zerspalten.  Simon  gos 
mich,  1528."  In  English — "  Griffon  is  my  name,  I  serve  my 
gracious  master  of  Treves,  I  shatter  gates  and  walls,  whenever 
he  commands  me  to  exert  my  force.  Simon  cast  me,  1528." 
This  rock  was  supplied  with  water  from  a  well  280  feet  deep, 
which  occupied  three  years  in  digging,  in  the  year  1481,  and  has 
a  subterranean  communication  with  Coblentz,  dug  out  of  the  so- 
lid rock:  the  fortress  was  justly  deemed,  when  properly  garri- 
soned, impregnable.  In  the  time  of  the  Swedish  war,  the  attacks 
of  eighty  thousand  French  troops  on  the  southren  side  of  it,  and 
of  forty  thousand  on  the  northren,  could  make  no  impression 
upon  it ;  however,  still  maintaining  its  invulnerable  character,  it 
was  destined  to  bend  to  a  foe,  before  which  all  local  advantage  is 
useless,  and  all  enterprize  unavailing:  after  bravely  sustaining  a 
blockade  for  a  whole  year,  by  the  troops  of  the  French  republic, 
the  garrison  having  endured  with  the  greatest  fortitude  almost 
every  description  of  privation  and  misery,  were  obliged  to  surren- 
der to  famine,  and  capitulated  on  the  28th  January,  1799;  soon 
after  which  the  French  covered  this  mighty  rock  with  the  ruins 
of  those  wonderful  fortifications,  which  had  employed  the  skill  of 
the  ablest  engineer  to  complete,  and  which,  but  for  the  want  of 
food,  would  have  defied  the  force  of  her  assenting  enemy  to  the 
end  of  time.  The  thai,  or  valley  below,  is  justly  celebrated  for  its 
fertility  and  romantic  beauty. 

Soon  after  our  departure  from  Coblentz,  we  passed  the  island 
of  Obewerth;  and  a  little  further  on,  on  our  left,  the  disembogue- 
ment  of  the  river  Lahn,  which  flows  between  two  ancient  and 
picturesque  towns,  called  the  Upper  and  Lower  Lahnsteins,  where 
the  Rhine  forms  a  considerable  curve,  and  expands  into  the  re- 
semblance of  a  placid  lake,  adorned  with  two  vast  mountains,  one 
crowned  v>  ith  a  hoary  watch  tower,  and  the  base  of  the  other  half 


272  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

encircled  by  a  village,  and  the  whole  adorned  by  the  captivating 
combinations  of  forest  scenery,  rich  meadows,  and  hanging  vine- 
yards and  orchards,  amidst  which,  half  embosomed  in  their  foli- 
age, the  peasant's  peaceful  dwelling  every  now  and  then  gladden- 
ed the  eye.  This  lovely  view  was  soon  exchanged  for  one  of  gloo- 
my magnificence;  before  we  reached  Boppart,  we  entered  a  me- 
lancholy defile  of  barren  ana  rugged  rocks,  rising  perpendicularly 
from  the  river  to  an  immense  height,  and  throwing  a  shade  and 
horror  over  the  whole  scene;  here  all  was  silent,  and  no  traces  of 
man  were  to  be  found  but  in  a  few  dispersed  fishermen's  huts, 
and  crucifixes.  Fear  and  superstition,  "  when  the  day  has  gone 
down,  and  the  stars  are  few,"  have  long  filled  every  cave  with 
banditti,  and  every  solitary  recess  with  apparitions. 

In  the  course  of  my  passage  I  frequently,  when  the  boat  came 
very  near  the  land,  sprung  on  shore  with  two  or  three  other  pas- 
sengers, and  varied  the  scene  by  walking  along  the  banks  for  a 
mile  or  two,  and  during  these  excursions  had  frequently  an  op- 
portunity of  admiring  the  astonishing  acthily  and  genius  of  the 
French,  who  have,  since  they  became  masters  of  the  left  bank  of 
the  Rhine,  nearly  finished  one  of  the  finest  roads  in  the  world, 
extending  from  Mayence  to  Cologne,  in  the  course  of  which  they 
have  cut  through  many  rocks  impending  over  the  river,  and  tri- 
umphed over  some  of  the  most  formidable  obstacles  Nature  could 
present  to  the  achievement  of  so  wonderful  a  design.  This  mag- 
nificent undertaking,  worthy  of  Rome  in  the  most  shining  periods 
of  her  history,  was  executed  by  the  French  troops,  who,  under 
the  direction  of  able  engineers,  preferred  leaving  these  monu- 
ments of  indefatigable  toil  and  elevated  enterprize,  to  passing 
their  time,  during  the  cessation  of  arms,  in  towns  and  barracks, 
in  a  state  of  indolence  and  inutility. 

The  sombre  spires  of  Boppart,  surrounded  by  its  black  wall 
and  towers,  presented  a  melancholy  appearance  to  the  eye,  re- 
lieved by  the  rich  foliage  of  the  trees  in  its  vicinity,  and  the  moun- 
tains behind  it  irregularly  intersected  with  terraces  covered  with 
vines  to  their  very  summits.  The  antiquity  of  this  city  is  very 
great;  it  was  one  of  the  fifty  places  of  defence  erected  on  the  banks 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  273 

of  the  Rhine  by  Drusus  Germanicus,  and  in  the  middle  ages  was 
an  imperial  city. 

Not  far  from  Boppart  we  saw,  on  the  right  bank  of  the  river, 
a  procession  of  nuns  and  friars  returning  to  a  convent,  the  belfry 
of  which  just  peeped  above  a  noble  avenue  of  walnut-trees;  they 
were  singing,  and  their  voices  increased  the  solemn  effect  of  the 
surrounding  scenery.  We  put  up  for  the  night  at  a  little  village, 
amid  mountains  half  covered  with  vineyards,  tufted  with  forests, 
and  chequered  with  convents  and  ruined  castles.  The  evening 
was  stormy,  and  a  full  moon  occasionally  brightened  the  scene: 
frequently  we  were  enveloped  in  solemn  gloom, 

When  the  broken  arches  are  as  black  as  night, 
And  each  shafted  Oriel  glimmers  white, 
When  the  cold  light's  uncertain  show'r, 
Streams  on  the  ruin'd  central  tow'r. 

Lay  of  the  last  Minstrel. 


M 


274       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

THE  YOUNG  CONSCRIPT SINGULAR  FRENCH    ANECDOTE ST. 

GOAR ITS  HISTORY OBERWESEL THE  PALATINATE 

A  CELEBRATED    VINEYARD A    REGALE BACHARACH 

BACCHUS THE    RHYNGAU     SONG RUDESHEIM ROMAN 

DERIVATIONS THE  PRIORY  OF  JOHANNESBERG VINEYARDS 

CLASSED GRAPES  CLASSED. 

I  HAVE  before  mentioned  the  excellent  accommodations 
which  I  have  every  where  experienced  at  the  different  towns 
we  stopped  at.  Although  at  the  last  place  where  we  slept 
there  were  not  above  three  or  four  houses,  and  we  were  not 
expected,  we  had  an  excellent  supper,  and  clean  comfortable 
beds.  After  our  repast,  as  we  were  drinking  some  excellent 
hock,  many  of  the  company  present  communicated  the  object 
of  their  voyage,  and  amongst  the  rest  an  elegant  young  French- 
man, about  nineteen,  who  had  charmed  us  all  the  way  by  his 
politeness  and  inexhaustible  flow  of  spirits,  told  us,  to  my  no 
little  surprise,  that  the  object  of  his  excursion  would  not  admit 
of  his  returning  when  he  pleased,  for  he  was  on  his  way  to  join 
part  of  the  French  army  at  Maynz,  or  Mayence,  as  a  conscrijit, 
for  which  he  had  been  drawn;  and  as  his  father  who  was  a  man  of 
fortune  at  Aix-la-Chapelle,  but  was  very  fond  of  his  money,  would 
not  put  himself  to  the  expense  of  paying  the  substitution  money 
for  him,  "  par  consequence,"  said  he  with  a  smile  of  good  hu- 
mour, "  il  me  faut  aller  en  personne."  He  told  us  that  he  had  no 
hopes  of  raising  himself  from  the  ranks  but  by  good  conduct  and 
equally  good  fortune,  although  his  uncle  was  a  general  in  the  ser- 
vice, and  commanded  that  part  of  the  army  into  which  he  was 
soon  to  be  incorporated.  Whenever  we  stopped,  he  bestowed  his' 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  275 

mpney  with  liberality  to  beggars  and  chambermaids,  alleging, 
that  as  he  was  about  to  be  a  soldier,  he  ought  to  live,  when  he  be- 
came one,  on  a  soldier's  pay,  and  that  to  have  more  till  he  was 
promoted?  would  only  make  him  uncomfortable ;  adding,  that  on 
his  arrival  at  head  quarters,  he  should  order  a  noble  dinner,  and 
give  his  clothes  to  the  waiters,  and  surrender  himself  up  to  the 
captain  of  his  company.  He  neither  blamed  the  cruelty  of  his 
father,  the  tyranny  of  the  conscription,  nor  repined  at  his  un- 
lucky fate,  but  filling  a  bumper,  exclaimed,  "  Tout  ce  qu'il  me 
faut  maintenant,  c'est,  de  devenir  bon  soldat."  "  All  that  I  have 
Jo  do  is  to  make  myself  a  good  soldier."  I  never  saw  a  point  more 
easily  and  comfortably  settled  in  my  life.  Our  young  conscript 
had  the  best  wishes  of  us  all,  for  his  happiness  and  speedy  promo- 
tion. This  elastic  spirit  of  vivacity  seems  to  be  the  common  pro- 
perty  of  every  Frenchman,  and  never  did  it  appear  more  striking 
than  in  the  following  circumstance:  upon  an  English  surgeon 
some  years  since  visiting  a  hospital  at  Paris,  he  saw  in  one  of  the 
wards  three  Frenchmen  who  had  received  some  very  severe  con- 
tusions by  the  fall  of  a  scaffold  a  few  days  before,  lying  in  bed ; 
upon  approaching  them  he  found  one  dead,  another  dying,  and 
the  one  in  the  middle  sitting  upright  in  the  bed,  fiddling  to  seve- 
ral invalids,  who  were  dancing  at  the  foot  of  it  as  well  as  they 
were  able. 

After  a  refreshing  sleep  we  were  called,  upon  the  first  inti- 
mation of  the  day's  approach,  and  early  in  the  morning  arrived  at 
St.  Goar,  after  passing  by  the  ancient  gothic  tower  of  Welmich, 
the  white  and  venerable  palace  of  Thurnburg,  crowning  the 
mountain  behind  it,  and  through  most  delicious  and  romantic 
scenery,  every  where  profusely  embellished  with  the  hoary  re- 
mains of  piety  and  war,  under  the  various  tints  of  progressive  day. 
In  a  minute  after  the  boat  had  stopped,  all  the  passengers  disap- 
peared to  attend  matins,  it  being  Sunday,  and  left  me  to  gaze  in 
amazement  upon  the  stupendous  rock  of  Rheinfels,  or  the  rock 
of  the  Rhine,  which  rises  most  majestically  behind  the  town,  and 
supports  the  remains  of  a  vast  fortress  which  bears  its  name,  and 
which  the  French  demolished  in  the  last  war.    This  fortress  was 


276  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

next  in  strength  to  that  of  Ehrenbreitstcin ;  it  was  in  the  year 
1245  converted  from  a  convent  to  a  fortress,  by  Count  Diether  le 
Riche.  In  1692  the  Hessians,  who  were  in  possession  of  it,  made 
a  gallant  defence,  headed  by  Colonel  Goerz,  against  the  French, 
who  were  in  superior  force  under  the  command  of  the  celebrated 
Mareschal  de  Tallard,  who  was  compelled  to  give  up  the  siege. 
In  the  last  war  it  experienced  a  different  fate:  the  French  troops 
took  quiet  possession  of  it,  and  though  it  ranked  next  to  Ehren- 
breitstcin in  strength  and  advantage,  it  partook  not  of  the  glory  of 
a  similar  resistance.  At  the  foot  of  this  enormous  rock  is  a  large 
barrack  lately  built,  but  now  deserted.  There  was  also  a  flying 
bridge  here,  but  it  has  been  removed. 

In  a  bay  of  the  river  a  little  before  we  approached  Oberwesel, 
there  is  a  vast  rock,  which  the  passengers  on  the  river  never  fail 
(p  address,  for  the  purpose  of  hearing  their  own  voices  very  close- 
ly imitated  by  its  echoes.  Almost  all  the  way  from  St.  Goar  to 
Oberwesel,  we  Avere  environed  by  enormous  dark  rocks  covered 
with  shattered  fragments,  impending  over  and  embrowning  the 
face  of  the  river  with  their  awful  shadows.  The  gloom  of  the 
scene  was  enlivened  only  by  a  few  fishermen's  huts  here  and  there 
interspersed,  protected  from  the  intense  heat  of  the  sun  retained 
by  and  reflected  from  the  rocks  rising  above  them,  by  the  foliage 
of  scanty  groups  of  trees.  This  melancholy  defile  prepared  us  for 
Oberwesel,  a  venerable  city,  filled  with  the  solemnity  of  ancient 
churches  and  deserted  convents.  In  the  time  of  the  Emperor 
Henry  the  Seventh,  this  city  was  an  imperial  one;  afterwards,  and 
till  the  French  seized  it,  it  was  in  the  possession  of  the  Elector  of 
Treves.  The  church  of  the  Minorites  had  once  a  fine  copy  of 
Rubens'  Descent  from  the  Cross,  by  a  disciple  of  his,  which  upon 
inquiry  I  found  had  been  removed.  Nothing  can  exceed  the 
beauty  of  the  situation  of  this  town;  the  scenery  to  the  south  of  it 
is  luxuriant  and  romantic  beyond  imagination.  Close  to  it,  ris- 
ing from  an  avenue  of  stately  walnut-trees,  is  a  prodigious  rock, 
supporting  the  celebrated  chateau  de  Schoenberg,  which  gave 
birth  to  the  illustrious  and  ancient  family  of  the  name  of  Belmont, 
afterwards  changed  for  the  German  name  of  Schoenberg  or  Beau- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  277 

mont:  this  place  and  the  neighbourhood  abound  with  slate  quar- 
ries. Immediately  opposite,  on  the  eastern  bank,  lofty  mountains 
clothed  with  hanging  vineyards,  and  attended  by  the  usual  asso- 
ciation of  mural  ruins  perched  upon  their  pinnacles,  and  of  mo- 
nastic buildings  projecting  from  their  sides,  or  rising  from  their 
base,  presented  their  majestic  forms  to  the  Rhine.  From  Ober- 
wesel  we  crossed  over  to  Kaub,  a  fortified  town  a  little  way  further 
to  the  south.  Previous  to  this  we  had  kept,  during  the  whole  of 
the  passage,  on  the  left  bank.  In  crossing  the  river  we  passed 
close  to  a  large  massy  fortified  tower,  or  fort,  standing  in  the  mid- 
dle of  the  Rhine  upon  a  rock,  called  the  Pfalz  or  Palatinate.  In 
distant  times  the  Countesses  of  the  Palatinate,  when  they  were  far 
advanced  in  that  state  which 

"  Ladies  wish  to  be  who  love  their  lords," 

used  to  remove  to  this  insulated  spot  of  gloom  for  the  purpose  of 
lying-in ;  afterwards  it  was  used  as  a  state  prison,  and  a  place  to 
watch  the  vessels  ascending  or  descending  the  Rhine,  to  prevent 
their  eluding  the  tolls ;  it  is  now  disused,  but  not  likely  very  soon 
to  run  to  decay  for  want  of  inhabitants.  Enthusiastically  as  I  ad- 
mire the  scenery  of  this  part  of  the  Rhine,  I  think  I  never  saw  a 
place  where  man  or  woman  would  less  prefer  to  be  confined  in, 
than  the  Pfalz. 

At  Kaub,  a  very  ancient  but  neat  town,  which  stands  at  the 
base  of  a  lofty  mountain,  in  a  handsome  inn  close  to  the  river,  we 
tasted  some  delicious  wine,  the  produce  of  the  neighbouring  vine  - 
vards,  for  which  we  paid  about  ten  pence  English  the  bottle :  and 
we  were  regaled  gratuitously  with  some  of  the  finest  grapes, 
which  a  pretty  girl  produced  as  naturally  as  pipes  and  tobacco  are 
introduced  in  similar  places  in  Holland.  The  vineyards  of  Ober- 
wesel,  Kaub,  and  Bacharach,  and  the  two  hills  of  Vogtsberg  and 
Kuhlberg  near  the  last  city,  which  abound  with  blue  slate,  pro- 
duce a  vine  remarkable  for  its  odour  and  muscadelle  flavour,  and 
form  one  of  the  distinguished  vine  divisions  of  this  enchanting- 
region. 


278  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLANp. 

Upon  leaving  the  Kaub  we  proceeded  through  a  scene  of  tran  - 
scendent  richness  and  beauty,  where 

Palmy  hilloc,  and  the  flow'ry  lap 
Of  some  irriguous  valley  spread  her  store, 
Flowers  of  all  hue,  and  without  thorn  the  rose: 
On  either  side  umbrageous  grots,  and  caves 
Of  cool  recess,  on  which  the  mantling  vine 
Lays  forth  her  purple  grape. 

Milton's  Paradise  Lost. 

Our  ears  were  delighted  with  the  solemn  choruses  of  the  in- 
habitants of  the  villages  returning  in  large  crowded  boats  from 
their  churches,  and  the  bells  of  the  convents,  while  the  shores  on 
either  side  were  enlivened  by  the  peasants  in  their  sabbath  dresses 
going  to  or  returning  from  their  respective  places  of  worship.  At 
length  the  hoary  battlements  of  Bacharach  opened  upon  us;  part 
of  this  town  slopes  from  the  vine-clad  mountain  behind  it,  and  the 
remainder  is  close  to  the  water.  This  town  is  also  very  ancient,  and 
as  a  proof  of  its  antiquity,  derives  its  name  from  Bacchus,  to  whom 
tradition  relates  an  altar  was  raised  upon  a  rock  in  the  centre  of 
the  Rhine.  Indeed  we  might  have  supposed  that  he  had  been  wor- 
shipped here  in  all  the  marvellous  pomp  ascribed  to  his  original 
adoration,  and  that  his  priestesses,  by  striking  the  earth  with  their 
thyrsi,  had  caused  rivers  of  milk,  and  honey,  and  wine  to  flow 

Et  te,  Bacche,  vocant  per  carmina,  lxta,  tibique 
Oscilla  ex  alta  suspendunt  mollia  pinu. 
Hinc  omuls  largo  pubescit  vinea  faetu. 

Virgil,  4  Georg. 

This  insulated  rock  was  admirably  adapted  for  bearing  upon 
one  of  its  trees,  if  ever  one  grew  upon  it,  those  little  wooden  or 
earthen  images  of  Bacchus,  which  from  the  smallness  of  their 
mouths  were  called  Oscilla,  and  were  considered  as  so  many  watch 
towers,  from  which  the  god  might  look  after  the  vines,  to  prevent 
their  receiving  injury.  I  know  of  no  situation  where  he  could 
have  performed  his  tutelar  duties  better  than  in  this  very  spot. 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  279 

The  vine  here  has  been  long  celebrated  for  its  excellence;  the 
jEmperor  Venceslas  preferred  four  fuder  of  this  wine  (a  fuder  is 
equal  to  three  hundred  and  sixty  gallons)  to  ten  thousand  florins 
offered  to  him  by  the  inhabitants  of  Nuremberg,  to  redeem  their 
sequestered  privileges;  and  even  Pope  Pius  the  Second  imported 
for  his  table  a  fuder  of  this  wine  annually.  These  are  illustrious 
authorities  in  favour  of  the  Bacharach  wine,  but  the  best  is  its 
flavour. 

My  laquais,  a  merry,  good  humoured  fellow,  and  having  no 
bad  ear  for  music  withal,  amiounced  our  being  opposite  to  Lorch, 
the  first  town  where,  in  ascending  the  Rhine,  the  Rhingau  com- 
mences, in  which  district  the  finest  wines  are  produced,  by  singing 
a  national  song  in  honour  of  this  vine-covered  region,  in  which 
every  person  on  board  joined  most  cordially.  It  was  a  very  long 
one,  but  the  following  stanzas  will  serve  as  a  specimen  of  it. 

Bekrantzt  mit  laub  den  liebe  vollen  becher, 

Und  trinkt  ihn  frbllch  leer; 
In  Ganz  Europa  ihr  herren  zecher, 

1st  solch,  ein  wein  micht  mehr. 

Ihn  bringt  das  vaterland  aus  seiner  fullc, 

Wie  war  er  sonst  so  gut  ? 
Wie  war  er  sonst  so  edel,  stille, 

Und  doch  voll  kraft  und  muth : 

Am  Rhein,  am  Rhein,  da  wachsen  unsre  reben: 

Gesegnet  sey  der  Rhein! 
Da  wachsen  sie  am  ufer  hin,  und  geben 

Uns  diesen  labe  wein. 

So  trinkt  ihn  dann,  und  lasst  uns  alle  wege 

Uns  freun,  undfrolich  seyn; 
Und  wiisten  wir,  wo  jemand  trauriglage, 

Wir  gaben  ihm  den  wein. 

With  vine-leaves  crown  the  jovial  cup, 

For,  search  all  Europe  round, 
You'll  say,  as  pie  as  'd  you  drink  it  up, 

Such  wine  was  never  found. 

Such  wine,  Sec- 


280  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

Our  Father's  land  this  vine  supplies, 

What  soil  can  e'er  produce 
But  this,  though  warmed  with  genial  skies, 

Such  mild,  such  generous  juice? 

Such  mild,  Sec. 

Then  shall  the  Rhine  our  smiles  receive, 

For  on  its  banks  alone, 
Can  e'er  be  found  a  wine  to  give 

The  soul  its  proper  tone. 

The  soul,  &c. 

Come  put  the  jovial  cup  around, 

Our  joys  it  will  enhance, 
If  any  one  is  mournful  found, 

One  sip  shall  make  him  dance. 

One  sip,  &.c . 

Every  child  in  this  part  of  Germany  knows  this  song  by 
heart. 

Fronting  the  august  ruins  of  the  castle  of  Sannek,  the  Rhine 
presents  the  appearance  of  an  ample  lake,  and  the  mountains, 
which  hitherto  were  numerous  and  lofty,  recede  as  we  approach 
the  pretty  village  of  Qrgeckshausen,  a  little  beyond  which  the 
river  expands,  and  forms  a  noble  curve  near  Asmanshausen,  at 
the  foot  of  a  forest,  celebrated  for  the  convent  of  Aulenhauscn, 
much  frequented  by  devotees.  Asmanshausen  is  known  for  the 
fine  blecker  which  it  produces. 

Nearly  opposite  to  Ruppertsberg  the  navigation  of  the  Rhine 
becomes  very  much  impeded,  and  rendered  hazardous  by  some 
vast  rocks  which  just  raise  their  heads  above  the  surface  of  the 
water,  and  which  our  boatmen  informed  us  had  frequently  occa- 
sioned the  loss  of  lives.  Here  the  country  again  becomes  rude  and 
rocky,  occasionally  covered  with  forest  oak,  and  profusely  orna- 
mented with  dilapidated  castles,  wher,e  the  steel-clad  chieftains  of 
other  times  used  to  blow  their 


war  note  loud  and  long, 


Till  at  the  high  and  haughty  sound 
Rock,  wood,  and  river  rang  around 

Lay  of  the  last  Minstrel- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  281 

A  visible  change  in  the  scenery  to  which  we  had  been  ac- 
customed, commenced  as  we  approached  Bingen:  the  hills  retire 
farther  from  the  banks  of  the  river,  more  modern  towns,  yet  oc- 
casionally chequered  with  the  remains  of  .antiquity,  attract  the 
eye,  the  trees  of  the  forest  succeed  to  the  vines  of  the  mountain, 
and  in  the  room  of  stupendous  rocks,  rich  meadows  and  corn 
fields  present  their  novel  charms. 

Bingen,  which  I  visited  upon  my  return,  stands  at  the  base 
of  a  lofty  mountain,  on  the  summit  of  which  the  ancient  castle  of 
Klopp  is  erected :  the  river  None  disembogues  itself  by  this  city 
into  the  Rhine,  over  which  there  is  a  handsome  stone  bridge,  cal- 
led Druses,  from  its  having  the  reputation  of  having  been  con- 
structed by  Drusis  Germanicus:  this  confluence  of  the  two  rivers 
enables  Bingen  to  carry  on  a  considerable  trade  in  Rhenish  wines, 
grain,  and  timber. 

As  the  shades  of  evening  descended,  we  passed  Ehrenfels,  and 
a  little  before  nine  arrived  at  Riidesheim,  where  we  supped  at  a 
very  handsome  hotel,  and  drank  copiously  of  its  wine,  which  is 
said  to  be  superior  to  every  other  part  of  the  Rhingau.  Very  early 
in  the  morning  I  visited  the  remains  of  a  magnificent  castle,  which 
has  the  appearance  of  a  Roman  origin :  this  opinion  is  countenan- 
ced by  the  strong  evidences  of  the  same  character  which  attach 
to  the  antiquities  to  be  found  in  towns  within  the  Rhingau.  The 
situation  of  this  august  ruin,  which  is  close  to  the  river,  is  com- 
mensurate to  its  grandeur :  the  town  of  Riidesheim  is  large,  clean, 
and  cheerful,  and  has  few  of  those  features  of  awful  gloom 
which  characterise  several  of  the  cities  on  the  lower  sides  of  this 
river,  which  here  widens  to  a  great  breadth,  and  is  dotted  over 
with  luxuriant  little  islands.  Upon  quitting  this  town  we  were 
more  frequently  retarded  than  we  had  been  before,  by  the  ob- 
structions which  terraces  projecting  into  the  river,  and  islands, 
offered  to  our  towing  horse,  who,  with  the  driver,  was  frequently 
belly  deep  in  the  water,  which  often  forced  our  boatmen  to  the 
tedious  application  of  their  poles.  The  towns  of  Geisenheim,  St. 
Bartholomai,  and   Winkel,  presented  the    same   sprightly   and 

agreeable  aspect  as  Riidesheim.  J  have  observed  that  many  towns 

2N 


282  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

in  the  Rhingau  are  of  Roman  derivation,  in  corroboration  of  which, 
many  of  their  names  are  unquestionably  so :  as  Winkel  from 
Vinicella ;  Eltivil,  from  Alta  Villa ;  and  Lorch,  or  as  the  Germans 
pronounce  it,  Lorricke,  from  Laureacum,  Sec. 

After  quitting  Riidesheim,  the  noble  priority  of  St.  Johannes- 
berg,  proudly  placed  upon  the  summit  of  a  vast  mountain,  sur- 
rounded with  villages,  hamlets,  convents,  nunneries,  and  other 
stately  buildings,  and  having  a  back  ground  of  distant  hills  covered 
with  vines,  commanded  the  admiration  of  all  on  board.  This  priory 
was  founded  in  1 102,  by  Ruthard,  second  archbishop  of  Mayence, 
and  in  the  devastating  war  of  thirty  years  under  Gustavus  Adol- 
phus,  was  rased  to  the  ground.  The  land  was  afterwards  sold  to 
the  abbot  of  Fuld,  who  rebuilt  it  in  its  present  modern  style,  and 
afterwards  it  was  given  to  the  late  Prince  of  Orange  as  an  in- 
demnity, and  now  forms  a  part  of  the  rich  territory  of  the  Prince 
of  Nassau  Usingen.  In  a  cave  or  cellar  belonging  to  the  priory, 
several  thousands  of  hogsheads  of  the  choicest  wines  are  kept. 
The  red  blecker  of  Johannesberg  is  celebrated  all  over  the  world, 
and  is  the  juice  of  the  vineyard  of  the  priory  only;  but  the  finest 
produce  of  the  Rhingau  is  from  the  grape  of  Asmanshauscn;  Eh- 
renfels,  and  Riidesheim,  and  particularly  of  some  very  small  vine- 
yards contiguous  to  them,  called  Rodtland,  Hauptberg,  and  Hin- 
terhausen,  which  rank  the  highest;  and  in  this  class  also  are  in- 
cluded the  numerous  vineyards  on  the  steep,  hills  of  Bingen,  on 
the  opposite  shore.  The  second  class  embraces  the  vines  of 
Rothenberg,  Geisenheim,  and  Kapellgarten.  The  third  class  in- 
cludes the  grapes  of  Johannesberg,  and  the  Fuldische  Schloss- 
berg.  The  fourth,  the  vines  of  Hattenheim,  and  Marker  Brun- 
ner.  The  fifth,  those  of  the  cloister  of  Eberbach.  Sixthly,  those 
of  Kitterich  and  Grafenberg;  and  the  seventh,  those  of  Rauenthal, 
and  the  hills  and  spots  adjacent.  All  these  classes  are  included  in 
the  district  of  the  Rhingau. 

The  celebrated  hock,  is  the  produce  of  the  vineyards  of  Hoch- 
heim,  or  High-home,  above  Mayence,  to  the  eastward.  Of  the 
grape,  that  called  the  Reislinge,  the  longest  known  to  these  re- 
gions, ranks  the  highest ;  the  Orleans  grape,  the  orange  or  red 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  283 

Burgundy,  and  the  Lambert,  occupy  the  next  place  in  the  public 
estimation ;  and  the  Muscadelle  and  Kleimberg,  which  are  fre- 
quently cultivated  in  private  gardens,  the  third. 

We  still  continued  our  course  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Rhine, 
and  passed  by  many  beautiful  villages,  and  the  handsome  towns 
of  Haltenheim,  Erbach,  Elfeld3  Steinheimerhof,  Nieder  or  Lower 
Wallauf,  where  ancient  churches  and  convents  are  interspersed 
amongst  many  handsome  modern  houses.  We  reached  Nieder 
Wallauf,  the  last  town  of  the  Rhingau  to  the  east,  and  afterwards 
Schierstein,  a  pretty  town  where,  as  our  progress  was  so  frequent- 
ly delayed  by  the  numerous  islands  which  lie  close  to  the  bank, 
in  company  with  a  very  pleasant,  intelligent  German,  I  quitted 
the  boat,  and  walked  to  Biberich :  the  day  was  remarkably  fine, 
and  our  road  lay  through  luxuriant  corn  and  pasture  fields,  vine- 
yards, orchards,  every  where  profusely  adorned  with  castles,  re- 
ligious houses,  picturesque  cottages,  and  beautiful  chateaus,  be- 
hind which  the  vast  forest  of  Landeswald  extends  to  an  immense 
distance:  at  length  the  numerous  spires,  and  the  lofty  towers  and 
palaces  of  Mayence  opened  upon  us,  from  the  opposite  side  of 
the  river,  and  had  a  very  venerable,  and  majestic  effect. 


284  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND 


CHAPTER  XXV. 


BIBERICH CHARLEMAGNE  S  PALACE BRIDGE  OF  BOATS 

MAYENCE HORRORS   OF  WAR THE  ART  OF  PRINTING 

THE     HOCKHEIM    HILLS REMARKS    ON     OLD     HOCK THE 

TOOTH-BRUSH FRANCFORT SPLENDID  TABLE  D'HOTE 

INAUGURATION    OF    THE    PRINCE  PRIMATE ANECDOTES    OF 

THE  FRENCH THE  FAIR. 

OUR  entrance  into  an  avenue  of  nearly  a  mile  and  a  half  in 
length,  thickly  lined  with  walnut,  apple,  pear,  and  plumb  trees, 
loaded  with  fruit,  announced  our  approach  to  Biberich,  the  superb 
palace  of  the  Prince  of  Nassau  Usingen.  As  I  made  a  drawing  of 
this  palace  and  the  adjacent  town  when  I  descended  the  Rhine, 
and  the  boat  was  in  a  central  part  of  the  river,  it  will  be  unne- 
cessary to  describe  it.  I  had  no  time  to  view  the  apartments,  but 
my  laquais  informed  me,  that  they  were  grand,  and  furnished  in 
a  princely  manner :  the  town  is  modern,  small,  and  very  hand- 
some. As  we  skirted  Ingelheim,  we  were  informed  that  the  il- 
lustrious Charlemagne,  the  great  prototype  of  Bonaparte,  selected 
this  place  for  his  favourite  residence,  where  he  built  a  magnificent 
palace,  which  was  supported  by  a  hundred  columns  of  Italian 
marble,  and  had  an  immense  number  of  apartments,  in  which 
synods  and  the  most  important  councils  of  state  were  held :  that 
his  son  Louis  le  Debonnaire  died  broken-hearted  here,  in  conse- 
quence of  the  rebellions  of  his  sons  Lotharius  and  Louis. 

Not  a  vestige  remains  of  this  celebrated  pile  to  prove  that  it 
once  existed :  but  in  the  life  of  Louis  le  Debonnaire,  Nigellus 
thus  consecrates  this  building : 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  285 

Est  locus  ille  situs  rapidi  prope  flumina  Rheni, 

Omatus  variis  cultibus  et  dapibus. 
Quo  domus  alta  putet,  centum  perfixa  columnis, 

Quo  reditus  varii  tectaque  multimoda, 
Mille  aditus,  reditus,  millenaque  claustra  domorum 

Acta  magistrorum  aitiflcumqne  manu. 

No  doubt  is  entertained  that  that  august  pile  once  embellished 
this  spot.  Charlemagne  could  not  have  chosen  a  place  more  ad- 
vantageous with  regard  to  his  political  relations,  or  more  beautiful 
in  richness  and  variety  of  scenery,  where  Nature  every  where 
saluted  him  with  wine,  with  fruit,  and  every  desirable  production 
of  a  genial  soil,  fit  to  make  glad  the  soul  of  an  emperor. 

In  less  than  an  hour  after  quitting  Ingelheim  we  reached  Cassel, 
immediately  opposite  Mayence,  to  which  it  communicates  by  an 
amazing  long  bridge,  formed  of  a  moveable  platform,  placed  upon 
fifty-six  lighters,  two  or  three  of  which  draw  out  at  pleasure  by 
means  of  ropes  and  pullies,  to  open  a  passage  for  vessels  ascend- 
ing or  descending  the  Rhine,  and  is  3830  feet  long;  one  very 
similar  to  this  was  built  by  order  of  Charlemagne  at  the  same 
place:  here  our  voyage  terminated.  On  account  of  the  search  of 
the  custom-house  officers  being  very  severe  on  the  French  side, 
the  passengers  prefer  being  landed  at  Cassel:  where  all  the  bustle 
of  a  populous  city,  and  a  great  military  station,  presented  itself. 
The  bridge  was  crowded  with  beautiful  and  elegantly  dressed 
women,  French  officers,  soldiers,  and  various  other  persons,  in 
carriages  and  on  foot,  going  to  or  returning  from  Mayence,  which, 
with  its  venerable  cathedral  and  splendid  buildings,  extending 
themselves  along  the  river,  had  a  very  grand  effect.  Our  luggage 
was  searched  by  a  German  custom-house  officer,  who  behaved 
very  politely;  and  I  proceeded  to  a  good  hotel  in  Cassel,  and  sat 
down  with  several  French  officers  to  some  excellent  refresh- 
ments. 

In  my  description  of  the  Rhine  as  I  ascended  it,  I  have,  from 
the  desire  of  not  fatiguing  my  reader,  only  noticed  the  principal 
towns  and  objects,  some  of  which  I  visited  then,  and  others  on 
my  return,  I  felt  myself  abundantly  rewarded  by  the  unparalleled 


286  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

beauty  and  grandeur  of  those  scenes,  which  so  often  excited  my 
admiration  and  amazement,  for  any  little  inconvenience,  and  per- 
haps some  little  hazard,  to  which  I  was  occasionally  exposed,  and 
I  regret  that  I  can  only  convey  a  very  imperfect  impression  of 
them  to  those  who  have  never  had  the  good  fortune  to  form  their 
personal  opinion  of  them. 

Having  been  previously  warned  not  to  attempt  to  enter  May- 
ence,  which,  as  it  is  now  incorporated  with  France,  I  shall  call  by 
that  name,  on  account  of  the  unusual  rigour  exercised  by  the 
police  towards  strangers,  in  consequence  of  the  city  being  the 
great  military  depot  of  the  French  on  the  Rhine,  and  the  grea- 
test skill  of  their  engineers  having  been  lavished  on  its  fortifi- 
cations, I  was  content  to  view  it  from  Cassel,  and  to  receive  some 
little  account  of  it  from  a  very  intelligent  German,  who  had  re- 
sided there  some  years,  as  we  looked  upon  the  city  from  our 
hotel  window.  The  electoral  palace,  of  red  brick,  by  the  side  of 
which  the  Rhine  flows,  where  Bonaparte  resided  during  his  stay 
in  Mayence,  in  1804,  presented  a  very  noble  appearance.  The 
dome  or  cathedral,  which  rose  with  awful  dignity  before  us* 
is  a  vast  gothic  pile,  having  four  unequal  towers :  it  had  once  a 
lofty  spire,  but  a  thunder-storm,  many  years  since,  beat  it  down 
with  lightning,  and  burnt  a  considerable  part  of  the  edifice.  Few 
cities  have  suffered  more  than  this  by  the  ravages  of  war;  most  of 
its  civil  and  sacred  buildings  have  been  at  one  period  or  another 
damaged  or  destroyed  by  cannon,  the  ruins  of  which  still  remain. 
My  intelligent  friend  informed  me  that  this  city  was  celebrated 
for  the  great  beauty  of  its  female  inhabitants,  and  that  before  the 
French  took  possession  of  it  the  electoral  court  threw  a  brilliant 
lustre  over  the  place,  which  was  unrivalled  by  any  city  on  the 
Rhine  for  its  gaiety,  elegance,  and  splendor;  characteristics  which 
have  been  impaired,  but  far  from  annihilated.  It  contains  colleges, 
lyceums,  a  theatre,  and  ball  and  concert  rooms,  all  of  which  con- 
tinue to  be  well  attended. 

Mayence,  from  its  having  been  always  considered  as  one  of 
the  great  bulwarks  of  Germany,  suffered  most  dreadfully  in  the 
last  war.    In  October,  1792,  General  Custine  compelled  it  to  sur- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  287 

render  after  a  slight  bombardment,  and  under  his  administration 
the  majority  of  the  inhabitants  who  did  not  fly  entered  cordially 
into  the  views  of  the  French  revolutionists:  he  augmented  the  for- 
tifications of  the  city,  and  placed  a  strong  garrison  in  the  suburbs 
of  Cassel,  which  has  always  been  considered  as  a  place  of  great 
importance,  and  raised  a  number  of  redoubts  and  batteries  there. 
In  July,  1793,  the  Prussians,  after  seizing  on  Costheim,  and  de- 
feating an  army  under  General  Houchard,  which  was  marching 
to  succour  the  garrison  of  Mayence,  reduced  both  that  city  and 
Cassel,  the  miserable  inhabitants  of  which  endured  the  greatest 
horrors,  and  many  of  the  finest  and  most  venerable  buildings  of 
the  former  were  fired,  and  nearly  destroyed,  during  the  siege. 
Merlin,  who  acted  as  one  of  the  commissioners  to  the  French 
army  during  the  siege,  stated  to  the  convention,  that  such  was 
the  scarcity  of  provisions,  a  jiound  of  horse-flesh  had  been  sold  at 
two,  and  a  dead  cat  at  six  livres,  and  that  five  thousand  men  had 
perished  in  defence  of  the  place.  Although  Custine  had  no  choice 
left  but  to  capitulate,  Barrere,  by  his  report  of  the  siege,  led  to 
his  being  denounced  and  decapitated.  During  this  siege  the  pa- 
lace of  the  provosts  suffered  terribly ;  the  celebrated  electoral 
palace  called  La  Favorite,  and  seven  churches,  were  totally  des- 
troyed ;  and  scarce  a  house  escaped  without  being  pierced  with 
cannon  balls.  Mutton  sold  for  sixty  sols  a  pound,  and  beef  one 
hundred  sols ;  and  at  last  bell-metal  and  paper  money  were  used: 
the  following  was  the  superscription  of  the  latter : 
"  Monnoye  de  siege. 
"  10  sols, 
"  a  changer  contre  billon 
"  ou  monnoye  du  metal  de  siege. 

(Signed)  "  Reubell. 

"  Siege  de  Mayence,  "  Houchard. 

-  Mar.  1793— ,2de.  de  la  Rep.  Fran." 

And,  what  an  epicure  will  perhaps  more  regret,  the  whole  vine- 
yard of  Hockheim  was  destroyed. 

The  French  were  highly  indignant  at  the  loss  of  so  important 
*  place,  and  resolved  upon  attempting  the  recovery  of  it  from  its 


288  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

victors,  as  soon  as  the  mighty  objects  which  claimed  on  all  sides 
the  activity  and  energy  of  their  rulers  and  generals,  were  accom- 
plished; and  accordingly,  in  June  1795,  the  French  army  again 
blockaded  this  devoted  city,  during  which  it  sustained  a  renewal 
of  its  suffering,  from  which  it  again  was  relieved  by  the  success- 
ful operations  of  Mareschal  Clairfayt,  at  the  head  of  the  Austrians 
against  the  revolutionary  troops,  who  were  attacked  and  routed 
upon  the  heights  of  Mornbach,  when  the  Mareschal  appeared  be- 
fore Mayence,  attacked  and  carried  the  entrenched  camp  of  the 
enemy,  upon'  which  the  skill  of  their  ablest  engineers  had  been 
exerted  for  eleven  months  to  render  it  invulnerable.  General 
Schaal,  who  occupied  this  strong  position,  on  the  retreat  of  Jour- 
dan,  with  fifty-two  battalions  of  infantry  and  five  regiments  of 
cavalry,  was  obliged  to  retire  with  great  loss  in  cannon,  ammuni- 
tion and  men.  In  this  bombardment  some  Tyrol  sharp-shooters 
displayed  their  wonted  skill  in  an  amazing  manner,  by  killing, 
from  the  banks  of  Cassel,  several  French  officers  with  their  rifle- 
pieces,  who  were  walking  on  the  ramparts  on  the  opposite  side'of 
the  river,  the  breadth  of  which  I  have  already  ascertained  by  the 
length  of  the  floating  bridge.  In  the  beginning  of  the  year  1797 
a  better  destiny  smiled  upon  the  French  arms  in  this  region,  and 
Moreau  and  Hoche  made  both  sides  of  the  Rhine  resound  with 
their  victories,  when  the  troops  which  garrisoned  Mayence,  to 
prevent  the  entire  and  unavailing  demolition  of  the  city,  relin- 
quished its  possession,  and  the  French  remained  masters  of  it. 

Volumes  have  been  written  upon  the  superior  pretension  of 
Meyence  to  the  original  invention  of  the  art  of  printing,  and  to 
transfer  the  honours  of  the  discovery  from  Lawrence  Coster  of 
Haarlem  to  John  Guttenburg,  a  citizen  of  this  place.  A  vast  deal 
of  special  pleading  has  been  displayed  on  both  sides ;  and,  to  use  a 
jockey  phrase,  these  racers  for  the  merited  gratitude  and  admi- 
ration of  all  who  followed  them,  reached  the  goal  almost  "  neck 
and  neck,"  but  the  majority  of  judgments  given  appropriate  the 
glory  to  Coster :  his  mode  was  the  simplest,  and  therefore  thought 
to  be  the  earliest;  his  moulds  were  made  of  wood  and  immovea- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  289 

ble,  and  he  stamped  the  paper  only  on  one  side :  Guttenburg  prin- 
ed  on  both  sides  of  the  leaf  with  moveable  metal  types. 

The  extremity  of  the  bridge  towards  Cassel,  and  all  the  ram- 
parts and  redoubts  of  the  town,  which  are  very  strongly  fortified, 
were  occupied  by  French  soldiers.  With  two  German  gentlemen 
and  a  Dutch  officer,  I  sat  off  for  Francfort,  distant  eight  stunder  or 
hours,  or  four  German  miles,  under  a  scorching  sun,  which  did 
not  seem  to  have  any  effect  upon  a  large  party  of  monks  and 
priests,  and  followers,  bearing  the  host,  who  were  walking  bare 
headed  in  procession  to  a  monastery  which  we  had  just  passed, 
near  which  I  left  the  carriage  to  make  a  sketch  of  Mayence,  upon  a 
projecting  bank  of  the  river  Maine,  where  I  bade  adieu  to  the  Rhine. 
Our  road  lay  through  an  avenue  of  walnut,  apple,  and  pear  trees, 
loaded  with  fruit,  to  which  passengers  helped  themselves  when- 
ever inclination  disposed  them  to  do  so;  and  part  of  the  Hockheim 
hiils,  covered  with  the  renowned  vineyards,  which  produce  what 
in  England  is  called  old  hock.  As  many  a  saint,  high  in  supersti- 
tious veneration,  must  have  had  at  least  ten  sculls  and  one  hun- 
dred toe  nails,  as  if  no  illusion  has  been  practised  by  those  who 
have  exhibited  them  to  the  credulous  in  different  eras  and  various 
regions,  so  nothing  short  of  the  power  of  transmuting  water  into 
wine,  could  produce  from  these  vineyards  the  immense  quantity 
of  wine  which  passes  under  the  title  of  hock.  Certain  it  is,  that 
the  greater  quantity  of  wine  honoured  with  that  name,  is  from 
the  grapes  of  both  sides  of  the  lower  part  of  the  Rhine.  In  the  dis- 
trict where  it  is  produced,  very  old  genuine  Hockheim  wine  is 
sold  at  the- rate  of  three,  and  sometimes  five,  shillings  a  bottle. 

At  the  first  stage  we  stopped  at  a  village  where  there  is  a  noble 
building  upon  an  eminence,  commanding  a  beautiful  prospect, 
which  I  at  first  took  for  a  palace,  but  it  proved  to  be  a  tobacco 
manufactory,  warehouses,  and  the  residence  of  the  proprietor  and 
his  family ;  the  front  is  five  hundred  feet  long,  and  the  whole 
exterior  infinitely  more  princely  than  Buckingham-house.  After 
passing  this  place  the  road  became  level,  and  the  country  present- 
ed corn-fields,  pasture,  and  orchards  in  great  abundance.    For 

many  miles  round,  this  country  had  been  often  the  theatre  of  hos- 

20 


290  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

tilities ;  and  though  Nature  had  long  since  effaced  their  melan- 
choly impressions  from  her  fields  by  reviving  verdure,  yet  pros- 
trate cottages  and  battered  convents  displayed  the  march  and 
ravages  of  the  demon  War!  Happy,  thrice  happy  my  own  coun- 
try, where  the  sound  of  cannon  is  never  heard  but  to  announce  a 
victory,  or  to  augment  the  gaiety  of  some  festive  occasion ! 

The  suburbs  of  Francfort  are  very  delightful,  and  after  pas- 
sing over  a  draw-bridge,  and  through  a  deep  gate-way,  we  enter- 
ed the  city,  the  streets  of  which  are  crowded  and  full  of  gaiety 
and  bustle,  in  consequence  of  the  great  autumnal  fair  which  was 
holding  there.  All  the  best  inns  were  brimful,  and  with  great 
difficulty  the  Dutch  officer  and  myself  procured  a  miserable  dou- 
ble-bedded room,  at  an  inferior  inn,  filled  with  petty  merchants  and 
their  families,  whom  the  spirit  of  traffic  had  led  to  this  celebrated 
mart,  and  was  half  choked  up  with  cases  and  boxes  containing  their 
merchandize.  This  town  swarms  with  French  soldiers,  about  thirty 
of  whom  slept  in  rooms  adjoining  to  ours,  where  they  deported 
themselves  with  great  order.  My  companion  had  just  returned 
from  the  Cape,  in  consequence  of  its  surrender  to  the  British 
arms.  He  spoke  with  liberal  rapture  of  gallantry  of  the  English 
troops.  In  Germany,  as  in  Holland,  time  is  taken  by  the  forelock, 
and  at  six  o'clock  the  stiefelputzer,  or  boot-cleaner,  knocked  at 
at  the  door,  followed  by  the  chambermaid  with  a  composition  of 
frankincense  and  other  gums  of  a  pyramidal  shape,  and  about  an 
inch  high,  much  used  in  Germany,  called  a  Raucher-kerz,  for  per- 
fuming rooms,  which  she  placed  upon  our  candlestick  and  left 
smoking.  My  Dutch  companion  annoyed  me  at  this  hour,  first  by- 
begging  that  I  would  hear  him  read  one  book  of  Milton's  Para- 
dise Lost,  a  little  English  edition  of  which  he  had  in  his  pocket, 
which  he  achieved  in  an  incongruous  melange  of  various  langu- 
ages; and  secondly,  by  begging  me  to  lend  him  my  tooth-brush 
for  a  few  minutes,  observing,  that  he  preferred  an  English  tooth- 
brush to  any  other,  and  at  the  same  moment  applying  it  to  his 
teeth  with  equal  alacrity  and  gratification.  After  he  had  paid  such 
a  compliment  to  English  tooth-brushes,  and  had  done  me  the 
honour  of  using  mine,  the  least  I  could  do  was  to  beg  that  he 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  291 

would  favour  me  with  keeping  it  for  my  sake,  with  which  he  was 
much  pleased,  and  accordingly  introduced  it  to  a  party  of  combs 
and  razors  in  his  shaving-case.  In  all  other  respects  he  was  an 
agreeable  man,  and  I  am  sure  a  liberal-minded  soldier.  This  city, 
which  was  till  lately  imperial,  is  one  of  the  most  ancient  towns  in 
Germany,  and  has  several  handsome  streets  and  noble  buildings  t 
it  is  particularly  celebrated  for  the  splendor  of  its  hotels,  which 
are  reported  to  be  the  most  magnificent  in  Europe,  particularly 
those  called  the  Rothen  Haus  or  Red  House,  and  the  Rorniskchen 
Kaiser  or^  Roman  emperor,  where  the  King  of  Prussia  lodged 
when  he  visited  this  town ;  and  the  Darmstadter  Hof,  in  which 
Marshal  Augereau  and  his  suite  resided  whilst  I  was  at  Francfort : 
so  crowded  was  the  city,  that  it  was  with  great  difficulty  and  some 
interest  I  procured  apartments  at  the  Weiden-hof,  or  Willow- 
Court,  a  second  rate  inn,  but  of  great  magnitude.  Our  table  d'hote, 
at  which  between  two  and  three  hundred  persons  of  respectability 
sat  down  every  day,  was  held  in  a  noble  room ;  it  was  splendidly 
served,  and  an  excellent  band  seated  in  an  elevated  gallery,  per- 
formed during  dinner.  The  principal  houses  are  built  of  red  and 
white  stone :  the  cassino,  to  which  I  was  admitted  by  a  card  of 
introduction  from  one  of  the  principal  bankers,  is  very  elegant. 
There  are  also  several  other  clubs  and  assembly  rooms.  The 
theatre  is  spacious  and  very  handsome,  the  performers  were  good, 
and  the  band  is  large  and  select.  Opposite  to  the  theatre  is  a 
mall,  formed  by  several  rows  of  trees,  wh;ch  in  the  evening  is 
much  frequented,  where  many  a  lover  may  exclaim  with  Moore, 

Oh,  Rosa!  say  "  good  night"  once  more, 
And  I'll  repeat  it  o'er  and  o'er, 
Till  the  first  glance  of  dawning  light 
Shall  find  us  saying  still  "  good  night." 

Before  the  Rhenish  confederation  the  town  was  split  into  two 
religious  sects,  the  Lutherans  and  Calvinists,  which  are  now 
blended  in  perfect  harmony  by  the  liberal  influence  of  toleration. 
A  grand  discharge  of  camion  one  morning  announced  the  cere- 
mony of  the  members  of  the  senate  and  the  colleges  being  about 


292  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

to  assemble  in  the  Romer,  or  town-hall,  to  complete  the  investing 
the  Prince  Primate  with  the  sovereignty  of  the  city?  the  keys  hav- 
ing been  delivered  up  before  to  the  representative  of  the  prince, 
under  a  similar  discharge  of  artillery,  agreeable  to  certain  provi- 
sions contained  in  the  act  of  the  Rhenish  confederation. 

Curiosity  induced  me  to  visit  the  place  of  this  meeting,  which 
is  a  very  large  and  ancient  gothic  pile,  situated  in  a  narrow  street. 
In  this  building  arc  several  chambers,  which  have  been  applied  to 
memorable  purposes;  one  in  particular,  which  before  the  late  re- 
volution in  the  German  empire,  was  used  by  the  Electors  upon 
the  august  occasion  of  making  choice  of  a  new  Emperor:  there 
are  some  good  paintings  in  some  of  these  apartments.  The  cere- 
mony of  the  installation  of  the  Prince  Primate  was  over  in  a  very 
short  time;  the  mob,  which  was  a  small  one,  soon  dispersed;  and 
scarcely  any  one  mentioned  the  matter  three  days  afterwards. 

The  cathedral  church  of  St.  Bartholomew,  which  belongs  to 
the  catholics,  is  another  venerable  relic  of  antiquity :  it  is  repor- 
ted to  have  been  built  by  Pepin,  king  of  France,  in  756,  enriched 
by  Charlemagne,  and  plundered  by  Lewis  of  Bavaria,  on  account 
of  its  chapter  adhering  to  the  Pope.  Strange  to  relate,  although 
the  coronation  of  the  Emperor  used  to  take  place  in  it,  there  is 
not  one  object  within  its  walls,  either  of  sacred  splendor,  or  monu- 
mental celebrity,  worthy  of  notice.  In  the  year  1792,  when  the 
French  entered  this  city  as  conquerors,  their  commanding  officers 
went  with  great  military  pomp  to  this  cathedral ;  where,  being  at- 
tended by  the  senators,  the  commander  in  chief  closed  an  address 
by  exclaiming,  "  Under  the  roof  of  this  venerable  temple  have 
not  many  of  you  witnessed  the  coronation  of  the  Emperor  of  the 
Romans?"  to  which  no  answer  was  given.  "  I  demand  a  reply  to 
my  question,"  exclaimed  the  general  with  some  warmth  ;  "  Yes" 
•was  faintly  answered ;  "  Then,"  replied  he,  "  you  will  never  sec 
him  more  in  this  place."  This  prophecy  issued  from  an  oracle 
■which  possessed  the  means  of  consummating  its  prediction. 

I  was  pleased  with  the  fair,  although  it  fell  far  short  of  my  ex- 
pectation; the  principal  booths  which  were  erected  near  the  Ro- 
mer, and  also  parallel  with  the  river  Maine,  formed  a  very  agree- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  293 

able  and  sprightly  street,  entirely  covered  with  canvass  awnings: 
here  all  sorts  of  goods,  the  productions  of  various  parts  of  the 
globe,  were  exposed  to  sale;  and  here  were  also  several  booksel- 
lers' stalls,  where  the  most  eminent  works  are  sold  folded  in 
sheets,  for  the  purchase  of  lesser  merchants  in  the  trade.  No  press 
in  the  world  is  so  prolific  as  the  German:  the  number  of  ingeni- 
ous works  which  it  annually  yields,  amongst  which  are  many  able 
productions,  are  astonishing.  I  was  informed  that  the  fair  had 
wasted  almost  to  nothing,  in  consequence  of  the  various  injuries 
it  has  sustained  from  the  war,  and  the  severe  policy  of  Bonaparte 
respecting  the  introduction  of  English  manufacture,  very  little  of 
which  was  to  be  found  at  this  mart.  In  the  printers'  stalls,  which 
used  to  be  well  supplied  from  the  English  school  of  engraving, 
were  very  few  prints  worthy  of  attention.  I  saw  several  execrable 
imitations  of  some  from  the  exquisite  pencil  of  Westall.  At  the 
end  of  the  principal  street  of  the  fair,  close  to  the  river,  were  rows 
of  immense  tubs,  in  which,  like  Diogenes,  many  poor  German 
tradesmen  and  their  families  very  sagaciously  eat  and  slept,  for 
want  of  a  better  habitation. 


294       TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 


BEAUTIFUL    VILLAGE  OF  OFFENBACH BRAVERY    OF   THE  HES- 
SIANS  ANECDOTES    OF    MARSHAL  AUGEREAU EXCURSION 

TO   DARMSTADT MINUTE-POSTS DARMSTADT LAW'S  DE- 
LAY IN  GERMANY AGREEABLE  MANNERS  OF  THE  GERMANS.... 

NATIONAL    ANTIPATHIES RETURN  TO  FRANCFORT GLOO- 
MY APPEARANCE  OF  THE  CONTINENT FRENCH  ARMY  ON  ITS 

MARCH  AGAINST  THE  PRUSSIANS RETURN  TO  LONDON. 

AX  excursion  to  the  beautiful  and  elegant  little  sovereign 
town  of  Offenbach,  about  five  English  miles  from  Francfort, 
enabled  me  to  admire  the  great  progress  which  the  Germans 
have  made  in  the  tasteful  art  of  carriage-building.  In  a  very  large 
depot  of  carriages  there,  I  saw  several  which  would  have  been 
distinguished  for  their  lightness  and  beauty  in  London.  There 
are  several  other  fabrics,  viz.  of  jewellery,  pocket-books,  tobacco, 
toys,  Sec.  The  society  of  this  place,  where  the  prince  who  bears 
its  name  has  a  little  court,  is  very  refined  and  accomplished.  The 
suburbs  of  Francfort  are  formed  of  beautiful  and  romantic  walks 
and  vineyards,  enlivened  by  handsome  country-houses.  On  the 
road  near  the  entrance  to  the  west,  adjoining  the  splendid  chateau 
of  Mr.  Beatham,  the  celebrated  banker,  at  whose  town-house  the 
present  King  of  Prussia  became  enamoured  with  his  Queen,  is  a 
monument,  composed  of  a  helmet,  a  lion's  skin,  and  emblems  of 
Avar,  in  bronze,  made  out  of  the  cannon  taken  by  the  King  of 
Prussia  from  the  French  at  Mayence,  mounted  upon  a  stone  pe- 
destal, rising  from  an  artificial  rock,  upon  which  are  inscriptions 
commemorative  of  its  having  been  raised  by  Prince  Williamstadt 
to  the  memory  of  the  gallant  Prince  of  Hesse-Phillipsthal  and 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  295 

three  hundred  brave  Hessians,  who  perished  on  this  spot,  when 
the  French  were  obliged  to  evacuate  the  town  in  the  year  1792. 
The  French  had  taken  quiet  possession  of  it  a  few  months  before, 
under  the  command  of  General  Neuwinger  and  Colonel  Houch- 
ard,  when  they  levied  two  millions  of  florins  upon  pain  of  military 
execution  on  the  opulent  classes  of  the  inhabitants.  The  most 
distinguished  personage  in  Francfort  was  Mareschal  Augerau, 
whom  I  frequently  met.  The  heroic  valour  and  skill  which  he 
displayed  in  the  campaigns  of  Italy,  particularly  at  the  battle  of 
Arcole  and  before  Mantua,  and  afterwards  in  Germany,  will  ren- 
der his  name  illustrious  in  the  military  annals  of  France :  he  is  a 
highly  polished  and  accomplished  gentleman,  and  was  equally 
admired  and  esteemed  by  the  inhabitants  of  Francfort ;  he  lived 
in  a  style  becoming  his  dignity,  without  ostentation,  and  was  upon 
all  occasions  very  accessible. 

Linglebach,  the  celebrated  painter,  was  bora  herein  1625. 
His  subjects  were  fairs,  mountebanks,  sea  prospects,  naval  en- 
gagements, and  landscapes,  in  which  he  eminently  excelled.  In 
company  with  my  two  friends  from  whom  I  parted  at  Rotterdam, 
and  who  rejoined  me  here,  I  set  off  for  Darmstadt,  about  eighteen 
English  miles  from  Francfort.  We  crossed  a  noble  bridge  over 
the  Maine,  and  passed  through  a  considerable,  and  fortified  town, 
called  Saxenhausen.  Our  road,  which  was  sandy,  was  for  a  con- 
siderable way  lined  with  luxuriant  nursery-grounds  and  vineyards. 
About  four  miles  from  Francfort  we  passed  a  plain  oaken  post, 
about  six  feet  high,  upon  which,  under  a  painted  star  and  crown, 
was  written  (in  German),  "  Sovereign  Territory  of  the  Prince 
Primate  of  the  Rhenish  confederation."  Upon  this  road  I  saw, 
for  the  first  time,  a  great  number  of  little  posts,  painted  white  and 
numbered;  they  are  called  minute-posts,  by  which  the  pedestrian 
traveller  is  enabled  to  ascertain  with  great  exactness  the  progress 
he  makes  in  his  journey.  A  very  handsome  avenue  of  stately  pop- 
lars, of  nearly  two  English  miles,  forms  the  approach  to  the  city, 
which  is  nearly  surrounded  by  a  lofty  wall,  not  capable  of  affording 
much  protection  against  an  enemy.  The  suburbs  contain  some 
handsome  houses,  in  which,  as  the  principal  hotel  in  the  city  was 


296  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

full,  we  took  up  our  quarters  at  the  post-house,  a  very  excellent 
inn. 

For  a  capital,  Darmstadt  is  small,  and  its  palace  infinitely  too 
large:  of  the  latter  the  Emperor  Joseph  sarcastically  observed, 
that  it  was  big  enough  to  accommodate  himself  and  the  nine  elec- 
tors. However,  very  little  of  the  internal  part  is  finished,  and  most 
of  the  windows  are  boarded  up.  The  Grand  Duke  and  his  family 
reside  in  a  part  of  a  new  palace,  projecting  from  the  old  one,  look- 
ing towards  the  gardens.  That  immense  structure  is  built  in  imi- 
tation of  the  Thuilleries,  and  surrounded  by  a  broad  deep  dry 
ditch.  The  hereditary  Prince,  who  married  the  youngest  daugh- 
ter of  the  House  of  Baden,  and  whose  sisters  share  the  thrones  of 
Russia  and  Sweden,  has  a  large  and  handsome  house  at  a  little 
distance  from  the  old  palace  ;  exclusive  of  this  prince,  his  Royal 
Highness  the  Grand  Duke,  Louis  the  Tenth,  has  several  other 
children.  He  is  turned  of  fifty  years  of  age,  is  an  enlightened, 
brave,  and  amiable  prince,  and  a  celebrated  engineer.  He  was 
the  last  of  the  German  princes  who  in  the  last  war  sheathed 
the  sword  he  had  drawn  against  the  French ;  a  power  which  the 
preservation  of  his  dignity  and  his  dominion  compelled  him  to 
coalesce  with.  Bonaparte,  when  he  was  digesting  the  Rhenish 
Confederation,  wished  to  invest  him  with  the  kingly  dignity,  but 
the  Grand  Duke  declined  the  offer.  Darmstadt  has  produced  many 
valiant  and  distinguished  officers.  At  the  parade  I  had  the  plea- 
sure of  seeing  General  Von  Werner,  the  governor  of  the  city, 
who  at  the  head  of  the  chevaux  legers,  or  light  horse,  performed 
prodigies  of  valour  in  the  Netherlands  in  the  last  war,  where  in 
one  battle  he  was  surrounded  by  seven  French  chasseurs,  from 
whom  he  received  the  most  desperate  wounds  in  various  parts  of 
his  body  before  he  surrendered.  The  late  General  Von  During, 
a  name,  on  account  of  the  heroic  courage  of  the  person  to  whom 
it  belonged,  for  ever  embalmed  in  the  memory  of  the  English 
who  served  in  the  last  war  in  the  Low  Countries,  in  the  years 
1793,  4,  5,  was  born  in  this  dutchy.  The  troops  were  good  look- 
ing men,  and  presented  a  very  soldier-like  appearance  :  the  uni- 
form of  the  officers  of  the  infantry  is  a  blue  coat  faced  with  scar- 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.       297 

let,  a  large  cocked  hat,  richly  trimmed  with  deep  silver  lace,  and 
lias  a  very  handsome  appearance.  The  dragoons  wear  a  casket,  a 
light  green  jacket,  and  are  well  mounted.  The  pay  of  a  soldier  is 
about  the  value  of  twopence  a  day.  Several  captains  in  the  army 
are  princes  (princes  appanages),  or  princes  of  a  distant  branch, 
who  have  but  little  property. 

The  principal  object  to  attract  the  attention  of  a  traveller  is 
the  Exercierhaus,  or  house  for  manoeuvering  the  troops  in  the 
winter :  it  forms  one  side  of  the  space  of  ground  allotted  for  the 
parade,  is  three  hundred  and  fourteen  feet  long,  and  one  hundred 
and  fifty -two  broad,  and  has  been  erected  about  thirty -five  years. 

The  ceiling  of  this  enormous  room  is  self-supported  by  a  vast 
and  most  ingenious  wooden  frame-work,  without  the  assistance  of 
either  pillar  or  arch  below.  Above  this  ceiling  are  a  great  number 
of  apartments.  In  a  part  of  the  room  below,  the  artillery  of  the 
Grand  Duke  is  deposited,  which  is  kept  in  high  military  order. 
About  four  thousand  troops  can  be  manoeuvred  in  this  room  with 
ease.  The  gardens  adjoining  to  the  exercise-house  are  laid  out 
in  the  English  style,  are  very  spacious,  and  would  be  very  beau- 
tiful if  the  ground  undulated  a  little  more ;  much  taste  has  been 
displayed  in  their  arrangement,  and  the  house  of  the  chief  gar- 
dener is  very  pretty.  These  gardens  are  liberally  opened  to  the 
public,  form  the  principal  promenade,  and  were  embellished  on 
the  day  I  visited  them  with  several  lovely  and  elegantly  dressed 
women.  In  one  part  is  a  neat  but  simple  mausoleum,  erected  by 
the  order  of  Frederic  the  Great  to  the  memory  of  one  of  the  land- 
gravines of  Darmstadt,  a  princess  remarkable  for  the  powers  of 
her  mind  and  the  beauty  of  her  person :  upon  which  is  the  follow- 
ing elegant  inscription,  composed  by  that  great  Prince : 

"  Hie  jacet  Ludovica  Henricae,  Landgrafia  Hessian, 
"  sexu  foemina,  ingenio  vir." 

*  Here  lies  Louisa  Henrietta,  Landgravine  of  Hesse, 
*c  a  woman  in  form,  in  mind  a  man." 

2P 


298  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

A  short  distance  from  the  garden  is  a  park  in  which  wild  boars 
are  kept  for  hunting.  The  religion  of  the  dutchy  is  Lutheran.  The 
affairs  of  the  state  are  conducted  by  a  court  of  regency,  and  other 
courts,  composed  of  counsellors  and  a  president,  who  regulate  the 
military,  administer  the  laws,  digest  the  finance,  and  superintend 
all  matters  that  relate  to  religion.  1  hose  who  complain  of  "  the 
law's  delay"  in  England,  would  be  speedily  reconciled  to  the  tar- 
dity  of  its  progress  were  they  to  commence  a  suit  in  Germany, 
where  it  excited  considerable  surprise  that  the  procrastination  of 
Mr.  Hastings'  trial,  which  lasted  seven  years  and  three  months^ 
should  have  caused  any  murmurs  amongst  us,  that  period  being 
thought  a  moderate  one  by  almost  every  German.  Living  in  this 
dutchy  is  very  cheap:  a  bachelor  can  keep  a  horse,  dine  at  the  first 
table  d'hote,  and  drink  a  bottle  of  wine  a  day,  and  mingle  in  the 
best  circles,  upon  one  hundred  pounds  per  annum.  The  society 
in  Darmstadt  is  very  agreeable.  As  the  minds  of  the  men  and 
women  are  so  highly  cultivated  and  accomplished  in  Germany, 
every  party  presents  some  mode  or  other,  equally  delightful  and 
blameless,  to  make  Time  smile,  and  to  strew  over  his  passage  with 
flowers.  The  country  round  Darmstadt  is  very  beautiful,  and 
abounds  with  corn  and  various  sorts  of  fruit-trees,  which  are  fre- 
quently unprotected  by  any  fence,  and  the  common  path  winds 
through  avenues  of  them.  Amongst  other  delicious  fruit,  there 
is  a  red  plumb  called  zwetschen,  peculiar  to  the  south  of  Ger- 
many, which  grows  in  great  richness  and  luxuriance  in  this 
dutchy.  As  a  proof  of  the  profusion  in  which  it  grows,  in  one  of 
my  rambles  with  some  friends,  I  met  a  boy  laden  with  a  basket 
full  of  them,  who  sold  us  130  for  some  little  pieces,  amounting 
to  a  penny  English ;  and  the  little  rogue  looked  back  with  an  arch 
smile  as  we  separated,  as  if  he  had  made  a  highly  profitable  bar- 
gain. As  I  was  walking  in  the  principal  street  with  a  friend  of 
mine,  I  was  struck  with  the  following  expression :  "  Look  at  that 
officer;  would  you  believe  it  that  with  so  fine  a  person,  and  a 
mind  to  correspond  with  it,  he  has  received  two  baskets?"  My 
surprise  at  the  expression  was  dissolved  by  being  informed,  that 
when  a  lady  refuses  an  offer  of  love,  she  sends  the  luckless  lover 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  299 

a  little  basket  as  a  token  of  her  disinclination  to  receive  his  ad- 
dresses. 

The  French  interest  is  powerful  in  Darmstadt,  although 
amongst  all  the  princes  of  the  Rhenish  confederation,  no  one  has 
displayed  more  energy  and  spirit  than  the  Grand  Duke.  A  strik- 
ing instance  of  this  occurred  to  one  of  my  companions :  in  this 
du.chy,  and  I  believe  in  other  parts  of  Germany,  there  is  a  law 
that  renders  it  penal  to  drive  off  the  road  upon  the  grass,  but  the 
postillion  who  drove  him,  having,  to  spare  his  horses,  offended 
against  the  law,  archly  turned  round  to  him  and  said,  "  Pray,  Sir, 
in  case  I  should  be  prosecuted,  say  you  are  a  Frenchman,  and 
then  they  will  not  make  me  pay  the  penalty." 

The  antipathy  between  the  natives  of  Darmstadt  and  their 
neighbours  of  Hesse  Cassel,  is  as  inveterate  as  that  between  the 
English  and  French.  As  I  was  preparing  to  set  off  for  Heidel- 
burg,  we  heard  that  the  troops  of  Darmstadt  were  expected  to 
march  at  a  moment's  notice  to  seize  upon  Hanau,  a  town  belong- 
ing to  Hesse  Cassel,  which  has  afforded  frequent  subject  of  broil 
between  the  two  countries;  but  upon  inquiry,  we  were  privately 
informed,  that  Bonaparte  was  expected  to  call  upon  the  Grand 
Duke  to  march  his  contingent  to  the  field  of  battle  against  the 
Prussians,  with  whom  immediate  hostilities  were  thought  to  be 
inevitable.  I  much  regretted  that  this  approaching  storm,  which 
began  to  spread  a  deep  shade  over  the  political  horizon,  prevented 
me  from  extending  my  excursion  further  into  Germany,  a  coun- 
try to  which  Nature  has  been  very  bountiful,  where  the  women 
unite  refined  accomplishments  to  the  charms  of  person,  and  where 
the  men  are  distinguished  for  their  genius,  probity,  and  indefa- 
tigable industry,  and  both  for  an  unaffected  urbanity  of  manners. 

Upon  my  return  to  Francfort,  part  of  the  French  army  rush- 
ed in  like  a  torrent,  on  its  way  to  give  the  Prussians  battle.  It  had 
rained  very  hard  all  the  day  on  which  the  advance  guard  entered ; 
but  every  soldier,  although  covered  with  mud,  and  wet  to  the  skin, 
went,  or  rather  danced,  singing  merrily  all  the  way,  to  the  house 
where  he  was  to  be  quartered.  This  city  has  been  dreadfully 
drained  at  various  times^  by  the  immense  number  of  French 


300  TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND. 

troops  which  have  been  billeted  upon  the  inhabitants:  at  one 
time  they  had  fifty  thousand  to  support,  and  to  supply  with  vari- 
ous articles  of  clothing  for  six  months.  Every  house  had  a  cer- 
tain number  billeted  upon  them,  according  to  its  size  and  the  opu- 
lence of  the  family.  Upon  their  march  the  French  are  as  little 
encumbered  as  possible ;  in  their  way  they  compel  the  farmer, 
butcher,  baker,  &c.  to  furnish  them  with  what  they  want,  for 
which  notes  are  given  by  the  proper  officers,  if  they  have  no  cash, 
to  the  seller,  according  to  the  price  agreed  upon,  which  is  gene- 
rally a  very  fair  one,  and  which  the  paymaster  in  the  rear  of  the 
army  discharges  upon  coming  up. 

As  the  gathering  tempest  prevented  me  from  penetrating  into 
the  south  of  Germany  beyond  Darmstadt,  I  applied  to  M.  Bacher, 
the  French  minister,  for  permission  to  return  pour  changer  to  Rot- 
terdam, by  the  way  of  Brussels,  Antwerp,  Sec.  but  the  old,  shrewd 
politician,  in  a  very  crabbed  manner  refused,  and  ordered  me  to 
keep  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Rhine.  Thus  was  I  obliged  to  re- 
trace my  steps;  however,  it  enabled  me  again  to  contemplate  the 
sublime  and  beautiful  scenes  of  the  Rhine,  which  I  did  in  a  boat, 
the  cabin  and  roof  of  which  were  crammed  with  passengers  to 
various  cities  on  different  sides  of  the  river:  the  wind  was  against 
us,  but  the  stream  was  strong,  of  which  our  boatmen  availed  them- 
selves by  placing  the  vessel  transversely,  and,  without  rowing  or 
towing,  in  two  days  and  a  half  we  bade  adieu  to  our  voyageurs,  a 
little  before  we  reached  Cologne,  where  we  landed  at  Duitz,  and 
retrod  our  steps,  which  enabled  me  here  and  there  to  correct 
errors  and  supply  omissions.  At  Wesel  we  arrived  at  half  past 
six  o'clock  in  the  evening,  and  found  the  gates  shut,  which  com- 
pelled us  to  sleep  upon  straw  at  a  little  inn  in  the  suburbs.  At  six 
the  next  morning,  we  beheld  a  sad  massacre  perpetrating  by  the 
engineers  and  soldiers  of  the  garrison,  upon  all  the  trees  in  the 
neighbourhood  that  could  conceal  or  assist  an  enemy  in  approach- 
the  town,  and  for  a  similar  reason  several  houses  in  the  suburbs 
were  marked  for  destruction.  Such  is  the  commencement  of  the 
horrors  of  war!  The  Prussians  were  expected  to  lay  siege  to  this 
strongly  fortified  town  in  a  few  days,  which  induced  the  Grand 


TOUR  THROUGH  HOLLAND.  301 

Duke  of  Berg,  who  was  in  the  citadel  at  the  time,  to  have  recourse 
to  these  severe  preparations. 

After  pursuing  our  route  through  Amsterdam,  where  the 
great  fair  was  holding,  during  which  the  Dutch  character  became 
absolutely  lively,  through  Leyden  and  Rotterdam,  at  the  last  of 
which  we  were  sadly  annoyed  about  our  necessary  passports  of 
departure,  which  require  the  signature  of  the  King's  secretary  at 
the  Hague,  and  the  countersign  of  a  Dutch  commissioner,  ap- 
pointed, during  my  absence,  for  such  purpose  at  Rotterdam,  in 
consequence  of  the  French  ambassador's  power  over  such  matters 
having  been  withdrawn,  we  at  length,  like  hunted  hares,  arrived 
at  the  spot  from  whence  we  started,  viz.  Maesland-sluys,  where, 
after  undergoing  the  vexation  of  more  forms  and  ceremonies  be- 
fore our  old  friend  the  commodore,  on  board  of  his  guard-ship, 
we  embarked  in  the  identical  dismal  galliot  which  brought  us  to 
Holland,  and  after  expecting  every  moment  an  order  of  embargo, 
we  got  out  to  sea,  where  we  endured  no  common  misery  for  six 
days  and  nights,  after  which  I  landed  again  upon  my  beloved  na- 
tive country: 

That  water-walled  bulwark,  still  secure 
And  confident  from  foreign  purposes. 

King  John,  Act  I.  Scene  2. 

#  2Q 


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